One last thing … the Old People and the ways lie buried, they’ve been buried but we still take them with us as we move ahead. The old and the new. The thoughts and words of those Old People, we still have those words, even though they are all gone.

– John Mawurndjul

Talking points

• John Mawurndjul’s artistic practice and his cultural custodianship.
  
• John Mawurndjul’s agency in mediating the experiences of multiple audiences.
  

During the development of this exhibition, John Mawurndjul was very involved in the selection of works and ensured that all written content was bilingual by using Kuninjku language. His paintings operate on two levels: what is seen and understood by balanda and that which is seen by audiences with a deeper cultural knowledge of the sites and stories that he represents. While balancing the demands of being an internationally acclaimed artist, he maintains his cultural custodianship and responsibility as a Djungkay. He openly and generously shares his cultural inheritance through his artistic practice, while still retaining undisclosed cultural information.

Warm-up

Think of all the different communities or groups you are part of. List the responsibilities you have in each community or group.

Discussion

John Mawurndjul worked closely with the curators during the development of the exhibition, selecting which artworks were most appropriate to include. If someone was curating an exhibition of your artworks, would you want to be involved in the decision-making process? If so, why? How would you influence the content in a way that a curator wouldn’t?

Activity 1 – Responsibility and motivation

John Mawurndjul balances different responsibilities and acknowledges his diverse audiences. Individually, consider the artworks you have made during your life and what motivated you to create them.

Write these motivations on separate pieces of paper. Working as a group or class, share these motivations with each other by placing them on the floor. Group similar motivations together. What are the most commonly held motivations?

Considering the groups of motivations, as a class, decide which you think is the most important. Order your motivations from most important to least important using string. Think about what is the main process of making an artwork through these steps. How would each motivation change the decision-making process?

Consider the decision-making processes involved in each motivation (that is, catering to different audiences. For instance, if you were motivated to make an artwork because it was a school assignment, how did you change your artwork so the teacher would like it better?). Stand back and consider this collective response. Consider how the collective motivations respond to your personal assumptions of an artist’s role. Do you think it is accurate? What do you think is missing? Why?

Early learning provocation

John Mawurndjul paints for many groups of people, family, community and balanda. Think of an experience you’ve had and draw two pictures: one you would like to share with everybody and one you would like to keep for yourself. What did you include for each one?