| Native All Stars celebrates the idea and strengths of an International Indigenous Art Community and references notions of “popular” sporting culture. Art is as important as sport isn’t it?
Artsworkers have traded the limited edition T-shirt for a portrait of themselves, which has been transformed into collectors cards and posters, promoting the cultures and regions of the individual and family names, while commenting on dislocation and modernity… Someone might represent a particular tribe, but may live on the other side of the country, or may never have lived where they descend from. Such are the complexities of Indigeneity now.
A series of this nature is important in a country the size of Australia, and an Ocean the size of the Pacific - where geographical isolation may not allow us to see mobs from other places, particularly as we're not likely to see ourselves represented in the mainstream media, fashion or advertising that are supposed to bring us “closer”.
The opportunity to collaborate and participate with like-minded, strong and proactive people from the International Arts Community is an invaluable experience - it is of utmost importance for us to maintain relationships across “borders” and assist each other in various ways – particularly with regard to support and networking in Arts related areas.
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