Background to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art and the art industry
Background to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art and the art industry Book Section
Australian Indigenous Employability, Education and Entrepreneurship: Exploring the Issues in a Compendium of Case Studies
- Author(s): Petersen, K, Congreve, S
- Secondary Author(s): Pearson, C, Burgess, J, Dayaram, K
- Published: 2015
- Publisher: Curtin University
Abstract: In contrast to the widely perceived failure of government to adequately address the many challenges facing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in post colonial Australia, the Abo-riginal art movement has been a major national and international success. There have been four significant art sector reviews com-missioned by government identifying a range of issues that con-tinue to impact on the effective ongoing sustainable operations of remote Art Centres. These issues include business practices, governance, staff training, staff recruitment and retention, and infrastructure needs. Most Art Centres have seen falling sales, coinciding with a long term drop in profitability and increased dependency on funding. This affects financial and social resil-ience and sustainability of the individual artists and the commu-nity. Additionally, one of the more significant changes has seen a doubling of Art Centre funding. However, this new funding is for employment activities, not for the practise of art. This funding issue is related to the changing role of some Art Centres from predominately concentrating on the production and sale of art to concentrating on more social and cultural concerns. Despite these significant inquiries and their associated recommenda-tions, the policy and funding regimes for art centres have not resulted in improved stability or the anticipated increases in sales across the sector. Additionally, government policy making and at times radical changes in focus have also been determining factors.
- Urls: https://espace.curtin.edu.au/handle/20.500.11937/9227, https://espace.curtin.edu.au/bitstream/handle/20.500.11937/9227/238886_238886.pdf?sequence=2&isAllowed=y
- Publisher Location: Perth
- Keywords: Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander, Art centres, Hybrid economy, Sustainability, Policy, Remote Australia