me-take

Bringing together the work of Christian Thompson, Dianne Jones and Tony Albert, this exhibition focused on Indigenous self-representation.

“Me-take is not about self-portraiture but about fabricating identity(ies) that glide across time, space, gender and race, whether it be the dandy, the adrogyne or the sexualized. On the edge of realities, indeed.” (Brenda L. Croft)

Tony Albert series, Gangsta Supastar in which he featured as 50perCENT: a gangsta rap persona with pride and politics were 1 x 1 metre high gloss photographs which looked at the popularity of black America rap culture among young Indigenous Australians.

“The rise of Aboriginal hip-hop is totally exciting and it’s really integrated with the stories and oral traditions that we were raised with.” Tony Albert

Originally from WA, Nyoongar artist Dianne Jones’ photographs, Hollywood Series were exhibited for the first time in Perth and featured familiar Hollywood movie stars. Jones’ photographed herself dressed up as her childhood idols; Grace Kelly, Cary Grant, James Dean and Audrey Hepburn, even Elvis was in the building! Jones’ beckoned for ‘a little less conversation a little more action’.

Christian Thompson series, Lost Together produced while in residence at The DasArts Foundation, Amsterdam saw Thompson frolicking in the Netherlands landscape in hybrid manifestations of Australia and abroad.

In his popular series Australian Grafitti 2008, Thompson presented himself wearing elaborate headdresses hand-made from Australian native flowers, echoing early representation of Indigenous people as flora and fauna.