Works of art never before seen outside of the Torres Strait have been unveiled as part of an exhibition four years in the making at Newcastle Art Gallery over the weekend.
WARWAR: The Art of Torres Strait, which includes more than 130 works created by traditional and contemporary Torres Strait artists, was officially opened on Saturday afternoon by curator Brian Robinson and gallery director Lauretta Morton in what Ms Morton described as a very emotional and incredibly significant moment for the city.
The gallery had been actively acquiring works since 2017, when Ms Morton - a former printmaker and practising artist who has long admired the Torres Strait printmaking schools - felt there was a significant gap in the gallery's collection.
"As a gallery, we collect Australian art," Ms Morton said, "That is our main policy. And what really upset me, and maybe it was because I was a printmaker, but there was no Torres Strait printmaking represented in our collection.
"I was thinking this is not right. This is Australian art.
"We have an incredible collection of non-indigenous contemporary art. We have an incredible Aboriginal collection from right across the country, but where is our other indigenous culture?"
Around a similar time, Ms Morton said she found internationally renowned Torres Strait artist Brian Robinson was expected at an engagement in Sydney and quickly made her move.
"He might say I stalked him" Ms Morton laughed, "I tracked him down in September 2017 at the Sydney Contemporary. I had checked the program and I knew he was giving an artist talk and I just drove down after work and stationed myself where I knew he would be for hours until he turned up.
"And all credit to him, because here was this woman with a wild idea saying 'You don't know me, but I really love your work and I want to do the biggest Torres Strait show ever in Newcastle'. And he didn't say no."
From that time, the gallery began working toward what would become one of the most significant exhibitions of First Nations Torres Straight art outside of a major city, working at one time around the Islands' wet season to acquire works that have never before been seen on mainland.
"The prints are all on paper," Ms Morton said, "So, the last thing they need is moisture or damp. So we were having all of these conversations between my staff and the people on the islands to find out when we could get barges over, and all of these plumbing tubes were arriving with the prints rolled up inside. We looked a bit like Bunnings. But it was just wonderful each week opening up these works."
When the pandemic descended in March, last year, Ms Morton and the gallery had already acquired around half of the works due to be exhibited and a decision had to be made.
"I rang Brian and I said I was thinking of postponing for 12 months," Ms Morton said, "It was a tough day. But you cannot do this show without the community. How could we have done this without the community coming to see their art and ancestors and celebrating the maintenance of their culture? You cannot do that with an online show."
The exhibition was opened on Saturday afternoon with traditional dances and singing by performers who had travelled from across the country to mark the occasion, and features a diverse range of works that showcase the evolution and strength of Torres Strait tradition and society from the 19th century, as well as the emergence of the contemporary art traditions.
The rescheduled show was specifically timed to coincide with significant dates including Mabo Day, Reconciliation Week and NAIDOC Week, and the 150th anniversary of the 'Coming of the Light' marking the time missionaries first arrived on the islands, and also coincided with the permanent raising of the Torres Strait flag above City Hall earlier this week.
Mr Robinson, the exhibition's curator, who spoke during the opening, described the Torres Straight as one of the most "fragile and unique" natural environments on the planet and was in high spirits to bring such a significant cultural collection to Newcastle.
"The area is named after Spanish navigator Luis Vaz de Torres who passed through the straits in 1606 during the age of great navigation that led Europeans to oceania," he said. "The history books say that he discovered the islands, but on the islands we say we discovered him.
"Well before discovery and exploration, the spirits and deities crated Torres Strait - a narrow stretch of entrancing seascape, between the landmasses of Papua New Guinea in the north and Australian mainland in the south, where the coral and Arafura Sea meets in one of the most fragile and intricate environment in the world."
"It is through visual art, dance, and song that ancestral stories and legends are maintained and passed on to the younger generation, and it is important that exhibitions such as this are supported to assist in this preservation."
"Newcastle Art Gallery have played a pivotal role in the co-curation of this unique exhibition, which contributes to the development, enhancement and understanding of this amazing indigenous culture."
"For the local Torres Strait Island communities, the exhibition is a way of reconnecting back to the islands; back to family and friends; back to a rich and vibrant history defined by amazing customs imbued with ceremonies and rituals that have endured for thousands of years."
WARWAR: The Art of Torres Strait will run from May 29 to August 22, and features artists Joseph Au, Grace Lilian Lee, Glen Mackie, Billy Missi, Laurie Nona, Brian Robinson, Dr Ken Thaiday and Alick Tipoti, alongside local artis Toby Cedar.
Visit nag.org.au for more details.
