Dec 9, 2010

Indigenous Artist opens exhibitions in Egypt and Australia   
Award winning Indigenous Artist Wayne Quilliam 
launched two major exhibitions this week 
‘Lowanna’(Beautiful Woman) series of art nudes at the 
Koori Heritage Trust in Melbourne followed by
‘Towindri’ (Where we walk) at Qubbet el Ghouri, Al Azhar, Cario.

The ’Gagudju’ people of Kakadu believe ‘Warramurrungundjui’ the creator spirit left the sea and gave birth to the people and land they now occupy.  She carried with her a digging stick and a dilly bag holding yams and waterlilies, she planted the food and created waterholes with the stick.  She was then joined by other creator spirits who shaped the land, rivers and ocean and once seeing her creation completed turned herself into a rock.

The Creation or Dreaming stories are in essence the fabric of Aboriginal culture and the earth.  ‘Towindri’ represents Quilliams visualisation of these stories and the connection Aboriginal people have with the earth in particular when culture co-exists with nature.  Each and every story has a ‘connection to country’ a spiritual essence or ‘religious’ overtone from the past and the future.  Patterns and textures of the earth are prevalent in both traditional and contemporary Aboriginal Art and storytelling.

Quilliam radically alters the perception of Indigenous art as he emotionalises the bond between humans and the spirits of the earth with his ‘Lowanna’ images. Quilliams world and iconography is replete with irreverent metaphors exploring spirituality and sublime nature with a profane point of view.  By manipulating the human form with abstract images he seemingly impregnates his photographs with an essence of life and spirituality.

Whilst creating these artworks Quilliam contemplated creation, belonging and love, exploring his humanity and what it means to be an Aboriginal man, why he was chosen to create these images, what is the purpose.  He finds an unexplainable and compelling need to immerse himself in his passion, to tell a story, to explain his vision, to highlight the beauty of our earth and the role we play.  The creation of this work has been a unique journey; each piece has a story, an experience that is as intriguing as the artwork itself.  The images are born of the earth and the spirits that inhabit it, the influence from a benevolent higher power is embedded within the artwork at every level.

Traditional Aboriginal stories and tales have influenced the artist's work to become increasingly intense, mysterious, and probing.  Quilliam explains, “To interpret my work is akin to demystifying the link between myth and reality, the process of covering and uncovering the human element of nature; to find depth, meaning and perhaps even a revelation that we are the vision of a ‘creator’.  I am intrigued by the differing perceptions of nudity and the role it plays in modern society”.

“I am in a unique position; my professional career has a distinct influence on my creative energy.  When working in rural and remote areas of Australia and overseas I have the opportunity to experience the intricate designs ‘Mother Earth’ has created for us and the many stories behind them.

Wayne Quilliam is considered one of Australia’s most prominent Aboriginal photographic artists with more than 130 solo and group exhibitions in Australia, Europe, Asia and the USA including the National Gallery, Artistry/Nellie Caston/ Rushcutters Bay/ Grenfell galleries and the Sydney Opera House, Parliament House(Canberra) and numerous Australian and International Festivals.

‘Lowanna’ features in exhibitions in Japan, Germany and Russia is many works are included in the permanent Australian Embassy Collections in several countries.  He travels the globe as an Australian Art Ambassador most notably at the Cumbre Tajin Festival in Mexico and recently in Guam and Indonesia.  ‘Lowanna Emergence’ was opened by the European Union Ambassador at the Museum of Young Art in Vienna, Austria as a part of the ‘Global Art’ series, Quilliam was the only Australian artist invited to participate.