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10 May 2010
Ground-breaking Yolngu art exhibition
Dr Joseph Neparrnga Gumbula, Makarr-garma
Curated by Yolngu scholar, Dr Joseph Neparrnga Gumbula, Makarr-garma has been constructed around the idea of a public welcoming to Yolngu land and includes specimens as well as art works and cultural materials from Gumbula's home country in North-East Arnhem Land.
The project, where the Macleay Museum contracted Dr Gumbula to curate the exhibition, is rare in public museums. Usually, a curator will work with a cultural expert to translate a part of cultural expression into public exhibition. And while many curators who regularly work with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have successfully collaborated with communities to bring projects to light, it is rare that the Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander expert or experts will take the lead in an exhibition from planning through to programs and display.
For Makarr-garma, Dr Gumbula, the University of Sydney's first Indigenous Research Fellow, was given free access to the Macleay Museum collections, and the particular narrative he has chosen, and the careful placement of each and every item, shows the benefit of his knowledge. Dr Gumbula takes visitors on a journey through a single day, showing how each element of Yolŋu's world view comes to life through the placement of particular specimens and objects. Yet the objects and animals in the exhibition do not stay still for the viewer, each element is constructed in conversation with another.
Makarr-garma also features stunning historical photographs of Yolngu land and people, from the University of Sydney archives, that Dr Gumbula has spent more than three years researching. This meticulous research has meant that many of the 'nameless' individuals in these photographs have now been identified, along with places and historically important moments, reinvigorating this archival material.
According to Dr Gumbula, Makarr-garma not only provides the wider community with insights into Yolngu culture but will also help preserve Yolngu culture into the future. "The pictures and the stories are telling something very important for Yolngu people," says Dr Gumbula. "Something that will benefit a new generation.
"My people really look forward to me continuing my work to bring back knowledge to the community because it affects how we think about ourselves as Yolngu and our place in the world."
Exhibition details:
What: Makarr-garma: Aboriginal Collections from a Yolngu Perspective at the University of Sydney's Macleay Museum
When: Museum open Monday to Friday, 10am to 4.30pm, Sunday, noon to 4pm. Exhibition closes this Sunday 16 May
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Wally Wallalipa holding turtle harpooning gear, Millingimbi, Arnhem Land, Northern Territory. Photo: W. L. Warner, between 1927-29. Reproduced with the permission of University of Sydney, Macleay Museum (HP99.1.Plate 704) |
