A photographic exhibition entitled Kicking up Dust was held in Shanghai Art Museum. 
 
Throughout mainland Australia and the Torres Strait Islands that lie to the north, there continues to exist a wide diversity of indigenous cultures.  In the Torres Strait for example, where only half of the 34 islands are inhabited, each place has its distinct cultural affiliations and its own way of celebration. Recently, a photographic exhibition featuring Australian indigenous culture was held in Shanghai Art Museum, under the title "Kickin' up dust".

The indigenous people of Australia have never been classifiable as a single homogenous group. Instead the social organizations, spiritual beliefs and cultural traditions of their myriad communities are as diverse and complex as the land in which they live. In conjunction, numerous oral histories and spiritual traditions have been handed down through the generations in the form of story, song, dance, public festival and private ceremonies.

Today, modern cultural celebrations are widely held to remember these ancient traditions and the importance of keeping these cultures alive.  The photographs in this exhibition bring us scenes from four of these cultural events, in order to showcase the current diversity of life in Aboriginal Australia. These cultural festivals were held between August 2002 and February 2003, including the Garma Festival, Torres Strait Cultural Festival, Stompem Ground and Larapuna. The exhibition is entitled "Kickin' up dust", a term which is explained by Sam Gerovich, the General Councilor from the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs in Shanghai.

"It's the movements of indigenous people in dance.  And the dance is conducted on the earth.  So the dust is kicked up.  It's a reflection of indigenous culture in Australia, which is extremely rich and old."

Sam Gerovich also talk about the significance of this exhibition.

"The world would have noted from the Sydney Olympics that there was a very substantial Australian indigenous cultural component in the opening of the Sydney Olympic Games.  There's also a very strong interest in Australian indigenous art, as reflected in the number of Australian indigenous paintings that are now on display in art galleries around the world.  So, we thought it's very important to bring this exhibition to China, so that people of China could understand the depth and richness of Australian indigenous cultures."

During the opening ceremony of this exhibition, accomplished Australian didgeridoo player William Barton performed an interesting piece on this legendary instrument. The didgeridoo is capable of producing some unique sounds, both traditional and modern, while music is of course a crucial part of Australian indigenous cultural festivals. This can also be seen from the photos of the exhibition. The Didgeridoo is a long, slightly conical wooden instrument, used traditionally by the Aboriginal people of Northern Australia. Known as the oldest wind instrument in the world, the origins of the didgeridoo may go back as far as 40,000 years. Though only one droning "note" can be played upon the didgeridoo, overtones and vocals from the player give it a rich sound and countless textures. Yet despite the ethnic, exclusive nature of this instrument, William Barton wishes to stress the global nature of music.

"I believe music is a universal language.  It's kind of like the painting on the wall, we all see it there, but we all get a different concept.  You understand the music in your own way.  If you talk to people like myself about the context of the music, I will explain more that this is what the Australia is about and this is the cultural heritage."

As the exhibition officially began, different cultural festivals were unveiled to the public, of which we'll present two, the Garma Festival and Torres Strait Cultural Festival.

The Yolngu (yol-ngoo) of Northeast Arnhem on Mainland Australia have one of the oldest living cultures on earth.  Now in its fifth year, Garma is a celebration of that heritage, underpinned by a philosophy of sharing cultural knowledge, of embracing the message of the land.  It is an open-hearted yet intimate event; traditional yet contemporary; carefree yet solemn.  It is looking to the past in order to make sense of the present.

The Garma Festival is mostly an indigenous event.  Many hundreds of indigenous people from around the region come to watch, listen, participate and learn here, as do various non-indigenous guests.  Clan affiliations determine protocol on Yolngu land, with strict attention paid to rituals and ceremonies

Meanwhile, the people of the Torres Strait Islands celebrate their unique cultural heritage with a Festival that showcases their affinity with the sea and the islands.  Since coming to these islands some 10,000 years ago, the inhabitants have developed distinctive styles of dance and music, which provide an insight into the deep connection that they have with this land. Indeed, dance is still the most popular form of local expression, with enthusiastic competitions between the Islands and totemic groups, as well as with mainlanders and ex-islanders.

The costumes and headdresses of the dancers are unique and considered sacred. Indeed, for some dances, permission is needed from the traditional ‘owners' before they may be used. The Wave Dance is one such example. At the photographic exhibition, we see a picture of members from the Thursday Island High School Dance Troupe, who are performing this Wave Dance from Boigu Island.  This group is a big draw card for the Festival and gets the crowd pumped up.

Held each year, the Torres Strait Cultural Festival can therefore be seen as a gathering of the clans.  The beat of drums, the pounding of dancing feet and the rattle of the shakers all combine to remind us of the diversity and strength of this region's unique cultural heritage.

Serving to reinforce the continuing spiritual and moral codes of the universe, cultural festivals do mean a lot to Australian indigenous culture.  Like the ritual of diplomacy, they serve to remind us who we are, how we should treat each other and how we should expect to be treated. Moreover, if you are interested in indigenous music, you can log onto the website of William Barton, www.williambarton.com.au.

(CRI.com December 14, 2005)