ABSTRACT

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art explores the effects of Queensland government policies on urban First Nation artists. While such art has often been misinterpreted as derivative lesser copies of ‘true’ Indigenous works, this book unveils new histories and understandings about the mixed legacy left for Queensland Indigenous artists. 

Gretchen Stolte uses rich ethnographic detail to illuminate how both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists understand and express their heritage. She specifically focuses on artwork at the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art studio in the Tropical North Queensland College of Technical and Further Education (TNQT TAFE), Cairns. Stolte's ethnography further develops methodologies in art history and anthropology by identifying additional methods for understanding how art is produced and meaning is created.

chapter 1|18 pages

Art and identity

chapter 2|38 pages

Curios and artefacts

chapter 3|24 pages

The history of the studio

chapter 4|22 pages

The studio today

chapter 5|22 pages

Disciplining the artist

chapter 6|20 pages

Value creation and the market

chapter 7|22 pages

Design elements

chapter 8|20 pages

Cultural content

chapter 9|11 pages

True North

chapter |17 pages

Figures