Cultural Appropriation and the Street Art movement

Yep, me again. Dragging out my bruised and battered soap-box again. I’ve been biting my tongue and sitting on my hands a bit lately with regard to public art (unlike me I know!). You see, I’m new(ish) to the community, having painted my first wall only 3 years ago. However I am so glad I have, because I’ve found the most amazing community and through...

May 2018

Banned. Again.

So apparently y’all don’t want to hear about the racism levelled at Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, People of Colour and Women of Colour on social media. This morning, I received this message to my personal Facebook account: Classy, right? So I could have shamefully deleted it, but because I want this shit to be visible; because I...

Feb 2018

I told you so

But I did, didn’t I? I told you I’d meet you back here; but I didn’t think the momentum of the Aboriginal Rights movement would have built as much as it has, particularly with regards to the Change the Date debate. Instead of barking glum statistics around our human rights (or lack thereof) at you like I normally do each January 26, I’m sharing the...

Feb 2018

An Open Letter to Mitcham Council 

An open letter to the Mayor and Elected Members of MitchamCity Council.  My name is Elizabeth Close and I am a Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara woman from the APY Lands in Central Australia. I have lived in Blackwood for the last decade. I am a professional Aboriginal Artist – in fact I’ve just completed a mural for The Department of Transport, Planning...

Feb 2018

Our Languages Matter 

it’s NAIDOC week! A celebration of all things Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander! Most people have heard about NAIDOC, as efforts to be more inclusive slowly permeate wider Australian society, but few people know the history of NAIDOC week. For those that don’t, here’s a brief history of how it came to be: Before the 1920s, Aboriginal rights groups...

Aug 2017

The Spirit of Australia

Ohhhhh NAIDOC week! Good to see you again! What a fantastic opportunity to celebrate and share Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture! Or have it exploited by corporate greed in multinational, multi billion dollar corporations like Qantas. Day two of NAIDOC, day two of white fuckery. (Aaaaaaaand cue the white fragility screaming reverse racism!...

Aug 2017

Oh you’re sorry? Me too. 

Two days ago, May 26, is National Sorry Day in Australia. It is the anniversary of the day in 1997 when the ‘Bringing Them Home’ report from the Parliamentary Inquiry into the Stolen Generation was tabled in the Australian Federal Parliament.   One of the key recommendations was that an official apology be extended from the Prime Minister to the people...

Jun 2017

The Public Holiday Which Must Not Be Named

12 months ago I wrote a piece about The Voldemort of Public Holidays. I shouldn’t be at all surprised that one year later I’m right back in exactly the same place, playing the same song, For those that didn’t follow me then, you can find the full post here. I wrote about the day “that the rest of Australia celebrates our dispossession, oppression,...

Apr 2017

Extra Salty

So yesterday I was able to access my personal Facebook account again after receiving a 24 hour ban. I know what you’re thinking; it must have been something really offensive to get not only my comment removed but get banned from the social media platform for 24 hours. It was. Well, I guess if the term “white people” offends you it was.  You read that...

Apr 2017

It’s been a while.. 

Gosh I didn’t realise how long it had been since I’ve updated Gerald! 2016 has flown by! So many fantastic arts projects this year – I’ve really enjoyed the street art projects I’ve been involved with this year. I made my street art debut during the Adelaide Fringe and the Little Rundle Street Art Project with ‘Municipal Gum’ and ‘Burnt Scrub’. I absolutely...

Apr 2017