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Aboriginal Art

Why the Silence?

Jeremy Eccles
Eyeline 91
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What if a tree falls in the forest but no one sees or hears it, and no one reports? Would it still have fallen? Extrapolating, does observation effect outcome?

This philosophical riddle—first bemusing the world via the mind of George Berkeley in 1710—came to my mind as I thought back on last year’s National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Awards (NATSIAAs) in Darwin—the 35th iteration of this most important annual testing of the waters in Indigenous visual culture—thought by many to have been one of the best. Yet it was awfully hard to find a sense of excitement, a depth of critical analysis, even a wide spread of factual reporting in the rest of the country. If an art prize is held in Darwin and no one reports…?

Actually, both the Sydney Morning Herald through John McDonald and The Guardian online via Helen Davidson did offer enthusiasm and context to their coverage, with the former assessing that ‘the strength and variety (across the field in Darwin) was revelatory’ under the tourism-orientated headline, ‘Speed north to Darwin to see the latest, most dynamic Indigenous art’. But The Australian, our national broadsheet, which only three years ago sent no fewer than four journalists/critics to cover the NATSIAAs, thought it unworthy of a single word in 2018. Nor, as far as I can discover did the ABC radio programs Awaye (covering Indigenous culture) or The Hub on Art.

Is Darwin too far away from their bases in Sydney or Melbourne? Is a 35th repetition one too many? Does the Northern Territory lack cultural journalists keen to sell a story? Is editorial coverage no longer decided upon news values but on... The rest of this article is available to subscribers of Eyeline

Gunybi Ganambarr, (Yolŋu Matha, Gängan, NT), Buyku, 2018. Etching on aluminium board, 300x300cm.

Gunybi Ganambarr, (Yolŋu Matha, Gängan, NT), Buyku, 2018. Etching on aluminium board, 300x300cm.

Telstra Art Award Winner, 35th Telstra NATSIAA.

Patrina Liyadurrkitj Mununggurr, (Dhuwal, Yirrkala, NT), Dhunupa’kum nhuna wanda (Straightening your mind), 2018.

Patrina Liyadurrkitj Mununggurr, (Dhuwal, Yirrkala, NT), Dhunupa’kum nhuna wanda (Straightening your mind), 2018. Film, duration 1’33”. 2018 Telstra Multimedia Award Winner, 35th Telstra NATSIAA.