About the artwork
This work is about my connection to the city as a young, Blak, queer person. What country means to me is different to some mob who live in more regional parts of our country, but it is in no way less real. As every Aboriginal person's experience navigating living within our colony, is valid and important.
Statistically most Aboriginal people live in cities and regional parts of our country, despite the consistent narrative played out in our Murdoch media that loves to paint us as all the same. Thats why I need to depict myself as a young blak, queer woman, within the context of our Australian cities.
I use symbols passed down from my family - to communicate my ideas of youth, colony and flora and fauna. I added a river, because I always thought that our waterways and power lines are a lot like the veins in our city’s body, connecting and navigating us.
Artist statement
About the artist
Aretha Brown is an artist, activist, public speaker, and screenwriter who takes heavy influence from her time growing up in Melbourne’s Western Suburbs as well as her own identity as a queer, Blak, young person living in the confinements of an urban colony.
Aretha made headlines following her speeches at both the 2017 and 2018 Invasion Day Protests in Melbourne where she addressed an estimated 50,000 protesters in Melbourne on Invasion Day, calling for the date of the national holiday to be changed and fighting to make Indigenous Australian history education mainstream.
Her delivery and ideas led her to be elected as Prime Minister of the National Indigenous Youth Parliament, the youngest ever person — and the first woman — to hold this position!
She is an accomplished visual artist, who has exhibited at the National Gallery of Victoria twice, with one of her artworks chosen as the billboard image promoting a 40-artist exhibition. Aretha has also exhibited at West Space Gallery, the Australian National University, and Melbourne University and has worked with major clients including Greenpeace, Converse, Puma and Apple.
You can find out more about Aretha and her incredible work here: www.arethabrown.au