AFVS 186C - Picture this: Contemporary Australian First Nations Art, Film and Visual Creative-led Research

Brenda Croft

Australian First Nations cultural practices, cosmological beliefs and creativity span 65,000+ years, deeply grounded in the collective cultural knowledge that we have been on the continent now known as Australia since time immemorial, from the time of the Ancestors who created land, seas and skies. This course explores collective and individual creative practice, from customary to contemporary representation, reclamation, reinvigoration & reimagination; through diverse media & trans-disciplinary platforms; informed by socio-political frameworks impacting contemporary Australian First Nations Capacity, Identity, Sovereignty and Ancestral Futures.

This seminar will include weekly lecture component on individual artists (studio practice, audio-visual, digital, installation, film, performance, video), artist-run-initiatives, art centers. Students will engage in discussions, presentations, papers and research as the expectation is that students will not be familiar with historical or contemporary Australian First Nations creative practice.