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Introduction
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We respectfully acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the Country where each First Nations artist resides, or where the art in Ever Present was created. We recognise their continuing connections to Country, Community and culture, and pay our respects to their Elders, leaders and artists, past and present. We respectfully acknowledge all First Nations Traditional Custodians whose art we are currently exhibiting in Singapore.
Welcome to Ever Present: First Peoples Art of Australia. This exhibition is a survey of historical and contemporary works by more than 150 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists from different cultural groups across Australia. Aboriginal Australians are the First Peoples of mainland Australia, lutruwita/Tasmania and the surrounding islands, while Zenadth Kes/Torres Strait Islanders are the First People of a group of islands that lie between Queensland and Papua New Guinea.
Many of the works in this exhibition mention the Dreaming, an all-encompassing worldview of spiritual beliefs, cultural knowledge and creation stories that are held by many communities of First Peoples in Australia. However, we should note that the Dreaming is a Western term that oversimplifies the complexity of the worldviews of distinct groups. Regardless, these beliefs are an integral part of everyday life, and draw on the notions of Country, family and resilience. While some of the knowledge passed down in creation stories is shared with the public, certain parts of Dreaming stories are considered to be secret-sacred, or restricted and accessible only to specific members of a Community or cultural group.
The works in this exhibition are an expression of deeply rooted cultural beliefs, and many of the artists featured have created art about the Dreaming and their Ancestors, as it strengthens their cultural connections and keeps their knowledge alive. Some of the works also look at the effect of colonialisation on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander lives, and what this means for the future of their peoples.
To begin your journey, please step forward into the gallery and move towards the large painting in the first space you come across.