"Historically Australian indigenous art is often politically or spiritually motivated" Discuss this statement using contemporary (postmodern) and

traditional examples Australian indigenous art is often politically or spiritually motivated whether it is either traditional or postmodern. Aboriginal art is a very important aspect of the Aboriginal identity and community. It takes many forms and often includes ideas about the Dreaming and in contemporary Aboriginal art, it also reflect political aspects of the artists World. Indigenous Australian art is becoming increasingly popular in Australia and the world and the variety of all the artworks shows the diversity of Indigenous culture. Traditional indigenous art often reflects a spiritual connection to the land. Traditional Aboriginal art is one of the oldest forms of art which dates back to more than 30 000 years ago. From rock carvings to rarrk (a method of painting involving intricate designs of crosshatching on bark), Australian Indigenous art has deep spiritual meaning. Aboriginal people are inextricably linked to the land through their spirituality. The land is their food, culture, spirit and identity. It is as if the Aboriginal people are an extension of the land that they live on. This spirituality is expressed in rituals, ceremonies, music and paintings. Traditional style aboriginal paintings can be recognized through the earthy tones (red, orange, white, yellow, black and brown) as well as the use of many unique techniques such as thousands of small dots. There is a great deal of detail in Aboriginal art which reflects their deep connection and respect to the land. The key obligation of Aboriginal people is to look after the land they live on which can be explained through the Dreaming. The Dreaming is a term used by Aborigines to describe the relations and balance between the spiritual, natural and moral elements of the world. This is not the same as the Dreamtime, which was the period of time before all memory or experience where supernatural beings and ancestors roamed the earth. Many Indigenous Australian artworks are associated with the Dreaming and the Dreamtime. The Dreaming is extremely important to Indigenous Australian culture as it establishes many of their beliefs and traditions. This is evident in many artists works as they depict certain Dreamings. This establishes and maintains their responsibilities and relationships with the land as well as all living creatures. The Dreamtime is the way Aboriginal people explain the creation of the earth and spirits still inhabit the land today. This is also important in helping the Indigenous Australians develop a connection with the land. The bonds with these spiritual beings and the Dreamtime are passed down from generation to generation through stories, art and ceremonies, which maintains the Aboriginal way of life. John Weeronga Bartoo is a traditional Aboriginal artist whose artwork is largely based around dot patterns and has very deep spiritual meaning. Bartoo used a stick and acrylic paint to paint this work. The stick is used as a traditional way of painting by many desert Aboriginal tribes. The artwork Bush Tucker Dreaming (pictured on the right) is an example of the way which the artist shows a spiritual connection to the land. Bush Tucker is a huge variety of herbs, fruits, flowers, vegetables, animals and insects that are native to the Australia. The concentric

Bush Tucker Dreaming John Weeronga Bartoo (2005) Medium: Acrylic on canvas

circles in the centre of the artwork represents a campsite and the four horse-shoe shaped rings around the campsite represent four men sitting down around the campsite, presumably cooking their bush tucker. The white line and oval next to each man are their spear and shields, which emphasises the role of the Aboriginal men in their society as food hunters. The other symbols are representations of certain animals and plants, such as the wavy lines representing snakes, the three pronged objects representing trees and plants, and witchery grubs also being represented. The purpose of the artwork is to show the process of Aboriginal bush tucker as well as representing male roles in Aboriginal culture. The artwork also helps to establish the connection between the Aboriginal people with the land by placing the men so close to all other elements of nature as well as using earthy tones in the painting. Bush Tucker is extremely important to the Indigenous Australian population, as they have utilised their knowledge of the land to sustain themselves for tens of thousands of years. This deep connection with the land (which provides the Aboriginal people with bush tucker) is evident in the painting. Urban Aboriginal art has also become very prevalent in Australian culture however traditional Aboriginal concepts and themes still remain very much present. Urban Aboriginal artists are those who lived in the communities most heavily affected by the initial colonisation of white Australians. They are largely self-taught and often the artists refer to Western styles of art for inspiration. Urban Indigenous art fits into the postmodern era of art because there are many similar characteristics between the two types of art. Like postmodern art, urban Aboriginal art rejects original boundaries and forms. Examples of this include the use of new techniques such as watercolour or canvas, pottery and painting, as well as straying away from the earthy tones to produce more variety in the artworks. Urban Indigenous art also questions the world that we live in and our history while radically interrogating our beliefs and policies, which is similar to postmodern art. Urban Aboriginal Art attempts to find a deeper truth in our world and therefore explores many political aspects of our world which had not been explored in traditional art. Urban art is increasingly becoming classified as contemporary art. An urban or contemporary Indigenous Australian artist who has truly addressed some very controversial issues concerning Aboriginal culture is Richard Bell. The artist grew up in a time and environment where white culture was choking and restricting Aboriginal rights, freedoms and cultures. This means that the work that Richard Bell does uses many words to convey strong political meanings. The subject matter of Richard Bells artwork is largely based on the idea that western culture is constricting traditional Aboriginal culture and that Indigenous people are being treated inferior. This allows Bell to fit into the urban art category because his artwork is shining new light on our preconceived thoughts on the treatment of Indigenous people. Because the artist is so passionate about his subject matter, it makes the work even more meaningful, making it harder to accept the truth and reality of our past wrongs. The political aspects in his art include Land Rights for Aboriginals, the Stolen Generation, loss of identity and culture for the Indigenous population and other social issues including employment and education. Richard Bells artwork Aboriginal Art It's a White Thing (below) is an artwork which explores the idea that Aboriginal art is being overtaken and overshadowed by artwork created by non-Indigenous people. The artwork consists of three components: the grid of geometric patterns in the background which is overlaid with block capitals. This is slightly obliterated by white and black splashes of paint. The block letters clearly spell out the phrase Aboriginal art is a white thing. These words convey that the Aboriginal art industry has developed into a white art market where the Indigenous artists are being exploited and deprived of their rightful earnings and respect. This artwork addresses other

issues as it implies that white culture is not only taking over the art industry (which is very important to the Aboriginal population) but it is also taking over their culture. The use of the grid-like background is a reference to traditional aboriginal art as many traditional artists use lines in their paintings in a similar style. However, the grid is blocked out on the side by large chunks of white and black paint. As these two colours are on opposite Aboriginal Art Its a White Thing Richard Bell (2003) sides of the painting, it suggests Medium: Acrylic on canvas conflict between the two cultures over the subject of Indigenous art. There is also a large red triangle in the centre of the artwork. A triangle symbolises God and reconciliation. This implies that there is a higher power that wants the Aboriginal and white population to work together and solve the problem of Aboriginal art becoming too mainstream so that they can become more unified. The use of the colour red further emphasises that there is a problem at the moment as red symbolises danger. The thin wisps of white and black paint across the entire painting represent the slight mix between white and indigenous art however these do not cover a large area which shows that there is still a lot of work to be done to help make Aboriginal art a traditional commodity again. The fact that Aboriginal art has become more and more western also shows that the traditional Indigenous Australian culture is being suppressed which is a growing issue in todays society. Australian Indigenous art is often spiritually and politically motivated which is evident from the traditional and contemporary examples analysed in this essay.

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