Always Was Always Will Be

Always Was Always Will Be

26 May – 29 August

“This year marks 50 years since the handback of the cattle station, Wave Hill, where Prime Minister Gough Whitlam poured earth into the hands of Vincent Lingiari in a symbolic gesture of returning lands back to the Gurindji people (16 August 1975).

Always Was Always Will Be explores Aboriginal self-determination through art and activism.

The exhibition tells the stories of community leaders who have continued to fight for their homelands, waterways, and health, so they can be self-determined in their communities.

Land Rights and Native Title were and still are big issues, and I wanted to acknowledge and pay tribute to the amazing achievement by the Gurindji people, while also focusing on the key stories of NSW language group peoples.

As a recognised Traditional Owner, over the years I've witnessed the misrepresentation and mistreatment of my people in Australia. Mining and Indigenous Land Use Agreements have led to the neglect and destruction of our sacred sites and still to this day my people don’t have property access to their traditional homelands.

We belong to this land; we are the protectors and caretakers who have continued to maintain our connections to the lands through spiritual and traditional practices since time immemorial. “

Guest curator Kyra Kum Sing, Boomalli Aboriginal Artists Cooperative 

Always Was Always Will Be features key artworks from artists and community members from Boomalli Aboriginal Artists Co-operative.

Exhibiting artists: Dr. Bronwyn Bancroft AM, Jeffrey Samuels, Brenda L. Croft, Avril Quaill, Arone Meeks (1957-2021), Michael Riley (1960-2004), Gordon Syron, Danny Eastwood, Nadeena Dixon, Jamie Eastwood, Debra Beale, Kyra Kum-Sing, Dennis Golding, Carmen Glynn-Braun, Rubyrose Bancroft and Hayley Pigram

The exhibition also includes loans of historical material from the Whitlam Prime Ministerial Collection, Western Sydney University Art Collection, the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia, and the Powerhouse Museum.

Boomalli was established in 1987 by ten founding members who were Euphemia Bostock (dec.), Jeffrey Samuels, Arone Meeks (dec.), Bronwyn Bancroft, Brenda L. Croft, Tracey Moffatt, Avril Quaill, Fern Martens, Michael Riley (dec.), and Fiona Foley.

Boomalli means ‘to strike or make a mark’ in three NSW Aboriginal languages (Bundjalung, Gamilaroi and Wiradjuri) and was one of the many key organisations set up in Redfern in the late 1970s early 1980s dedicated to Aboriginal self-determination.