Aboriginal Motifs

http://www.ozmall.co.jp/trip/kaigai/001/uluru.asp

Functions and Philosophies

1. Respect

Respecting Indigenous rights to cultural heritage includes the following protocols.

Acknowledgement of the country

Indigenous Australians, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, are the original inhabitants of Australia.18 As such they have a strong link to country, meaning the totality of life and the spirit of the particular area of land they and their ancestors inhabited.

When organising an exhibition, installation or event of local, state or national significance, it is respectful to invite a representative of the traditional owners to attend and give a ‘welcome to country’ address.

Public art - acknowledging land

For Indigenous artists, it it common practice to seek approval from the Indigenous community for public art-based projects in any particular ‘country’ in Australia. This ensures it would not be offensive to the local community.

Accepting diversity

There are many experience and cultural context within Indigenous communities. The Indigenous cultures are living and evolving entitles. Avoid inappropriate or outdated perspectives and terminology when dealing with any cultural groups.

2. Recognition and protection

The Indigenous visual artists own copyright in their artworks. They can control the reproduction and dissemination of the artworks. It is important to understand the Copyright Act and how cultural material might be protected under them. However, there are currently no special copyright laws dealing with Indigenous cultural material.

Moral Rights and Issues

The Indigenous arts were created not just for entertainment but for passing their messages over the new generations or for the sacred reasons. The techniques has been taken over from the old to the new generations for long time.

Their culture must be respected and the moral rights are to be thought about as well.

 

The alteration of the work by adapting, cutting, editing or enhancing may materially alter the original intention of the work and infringe on the artist's moral rights. It is also important to note that with Indigenous cultural material, maintaining the integrity of the work is important for the source communities as well.

Source:

Protocols for producing Indigenous Australian visual arts:

http://www.australiacouncil.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/32368/Visual_arts_protocol_guide.pdf