Curating Difference: An Analysis of Contemporary Curatorial Practices in the Context of Indigenous Australian Art - Burgeoning Strategies in the Modes of Address

Since entering the international fine arts market in the 1970s, Indigenous Australian art has long contended with its positioning within a system that — until very recently — was ascribed to an exhibitionary method based on Western epistemology only. Debates surrounding the display of so-called ‘non-Western’ art and its place in modernity and the fine arts institution have produced several responses in the form of curatorial strategies. These strategies have emerged both in light of an increasing public awareness of the role of the curator in the representation of culture, and in the context of the museum as an inherently contentious space of knowledge construction. This thesis centres on the identification of these strategies, and its usage in four case studies. These case studies include the exhibitions fluent (1997), held at the 47th Venice Biennale, Theme Park (2008) at the Museum of Contemporary Aboriginal Art (AAMU), Indigenous Australia: Enduring Civilisation (2015), held at...Show moreSince entering the international fine arts market in the 1970s, Indigenous Australian art has long contended with its positioning within a system that — until very recently — was ascribed to an exhibitionary method based on Western epistemology only. Debates surrounding the display of so-called ‘non-Western’ art and its place in modernity and the fine arts institution have produced several responses in the form of curatorial strategies. These strategies have emerged both in light of an increasing public awareness of the role of the curator in the representation of culture, and in the context of the museum as an inherently contentious space of knowledge construction. This thesis centres on the identification of these strategies, and its usage in four case studies. These case studies include the exhibitions fluent (1997), held at the 47th Venice Biennale, Theme Park (2008) at the Museum of Contemporary Aboriginal Art (AAMU), Indigenous Australia: Enduring Civilisation (2015), held at the British Museum and Frontier Imaginaries (2015 - ongoing), a travelling exhibition. By evaluating the applications of these strategies, this thesis sheds light on the manner in which curatorial strategies have formed the display of contemporary Indigenous art, and further highlights potentially impactful developments in the field of contemporary curation.Show less

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Curating Difference: An Analysis of Contemporary Curatorial Practices in the Context of Indigenous Australian Art - Burgeoning Strategies in the Modes of Address