Creative Equity Toolkit

Indigenising the Arts: Jacob Boehme

For Jacob Boehme, a multi-disciplinary Narangga and Kaurna artist and Director of First Nations Programs at Carriageworks in Sydney, best practice in the arts begins with moving past inherited colonial systems of transactional art making towards trade systems influenced by traditional models.

‘Best practice’ is all First Nations teams not succumbing to the Western lens. ‘Best practice’ is foregrounding and centering First Nations’ performance methodologies at the beginning and/or centre.'

Intercultural Collaboration and the Responsibilities of Representation: Dalisa Pigram

Yawuru and Bardi woman Dalisa Pigram is the Co-Artistic Director of dance company Marrugeku.

'Working with those Elders and with other artists at a young age, you develop a sense of responsibility. Best practice is to accept that responsibility – where you sit in the group.'

'We did this as a collective – it wasn’t one person at the front telling everybody what to do... it was 'listen to these people who hold that story and everybody brings their strength to work out the best way.'

Racial Equity and Representation

Recommendations from the National Association for the Visual Arts' Code of Practice for Visual Arts, Craft and Design.

Structural issues and barriers in the arts, 'can look like being asked to ‘perform’ your identity in your art, being visibly tokenised but not properly remunerated for your labour, having your culture and language disrespected, or being asked for access to your contacts or community without a proper process of paid consultation.'