Aboriginal Art Auction for Arts Law’s 30th Birthday Celebrations
As part of Arts Law’s 30th Birthday celebrations we are holding an online auction of high quality ethically -sourced Aboriginal artworks. The auction, which will be live from this week, will run in the weeks leading up to our gala-fundraising dinner and will conclude with a live auction at the dinner on the 3rd of September. The money raised from the auction will not only go towards Artists in the Black, our legal service for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists, but will also go directly into the pocket of the artists who have created these works.
There will be a wonderful array of pieces to bid on, from an intricately woven basket from Djilpin Arts from the remote community of Beswick (Wugularr) in northern NT, an acrylic painting from a senior traditional owner from Spinifex Arts in Western Australia to etchings and lino prints from Pormpuraaw Art and Culture Centre on the coast of far north Queensland. There will be around 40 artworks for sale, ranging in size, value and type, from all across Australia and each with its own unique story and background.
The artworks have all been sourced from Aboriginal art centres from regional and remote communities around Australia. Arts Law has built relationships with these centres through the outreach work of the Artists in the Black service. Artists in the Blackprovides Aboriginal artists and organisations access to free legal advice and information, to help them to protect their artistic work, their intellectual property and their cultural heritage. A key part of the service is going out to the different communities in order to provide workshops, seminars, legal advice or assistance. We also assist in drafting wills for the artists from the centres, which helps the artists to continueto provide for their families after they have passed away by facilitating access to copyright royalties as well as the distribution of money from the sale of artworks in line with the artist’s wishes. You can read about some of the artists we have helped from Papunya Tjupi here, Elcho Island Arts here, Tjanpi Desert Weavers here and Mowanjum Art Centre here, art centres all participating in the auction.
There will also be beautiful pieces from Ernabella Arts, Munupi Arts and Crafts, Pompuraaw Art & Culture Centre, Tangentyere Artists, Tjungu Palya, Waringarri Aboriginal Arts, Warlukurlangu, Warnayaka Art and Cultural Aboriginal Corporation, Wik-Kugu Art Centre, Yalanji Arts and Yarrabah Arts Centre.
Even if you are not able to join us for our 30th Birthday Dinner, you can still be involved in our celebrations by owning a piece of ethically-sourced Aboirginal art. This is a unique opportunity to support Arts Law and the artists we help.
You can buy tickets to our Gala Dinner here. Stay tuned for further details of the auction and art works.