03/11/2020
status: ACTIVE is a multimedia video work that raises and uplifts the voices of First Nations individuals of the Illawarra. As a non-Indigenous collective, Ovuhm recognises and attempts to deconstruct the colonialist lens, in order to shape how all people can unlearn their complacency in enabling white supremacy. Through a series of documented conversations, visiting members of the collective Aunty Bev Armer, Aunty Colleen Sloan, Catherine Moyle and Juundaal Strang-Yettica interrogate issues regarding racial biases and prejudices inherent in the education system, galleries and museums. Ovuhm explores what we can learn from Aboriginal culture in connection to land, sense of community, and care and sustainability for the environment, demonstrating how decolonisation is essential for the protection of our future.
This film will incrementally grow throughout the duration of the exhibition, with each addition navigating various issues in the ‘Here + Now: A Decolonist Visualisation of The Illawarra’ in Wollongong Art Gallery from 16 October - 29 November.
Thanks to: Stephanie Beaupark, Jesse Tyssen Productions, Dr. Sarah Hamylton, the Aboriginal Illawarra Centre, and the visiting members of the collective; for without them this project wouldn’t exist.
Ovuhm Acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the Land in which this work was created, and pays respects to Elders past, present and emerging. Wollongong proudly rests on the land of the Dharawal Nation. Sovereignty has never been ceded. It always was and always will be, Aboriginal land.
