The Aboriginal Memorial was conceived by Djon Mundine, First Nations’ curator, artist and then Art Adviser at Ramingining, Central Arnhem Land in 1987. One of the nation’s most significant conceptual works of art it was created by 43 artists, both male and female, from Ramingining and its surrounds in Central Arnhem Land, as a response to the Australian Bicentennial in 1988.

The Aboriginal Memorial, a conceptual installation of 200 hollow log coffins permanently installed in the forecourt of the National Gallery of Australia, has been described by Nick Mitzevich, Director of the National Gallery of Australia, as a ‘a major work of 20th century Australian Art and an enduring statement of First Peoples’ agency, cultural resilience and strength.’

The Aboriginal Memorial 30th Anniversary Symposium is being presented and funded by the National Gallery of Australia in conjunction with the Centre for Art History and Art Theory, School of Art & Design, Australian National University, and art history departments of the University of Melbourne and the University of Sydney. Brenda L Croft, Associate Professor of Indigenous Art History and Curatorship, Centre for Art History and Art Theory, will be chairing a Director’s Roundtable on Saturday 13 October, 3 – 4 pm, with with speakers including Nick Mitzevich, Director, National Gallery of Australia, Dr Marie-Louise Ayres, Director-General, National Library of Australia and Craig Ritchie, CEO, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies.

Event information: National Gallery of Australia