Context

The Art of the Skins project revitalised the practice of possum skin cloak making in South East Queensland, awakening historical traditions through contemporary art. Inspired by historical research and contemporary knowledge transfer, the project developed six richly decorated cloaks, collaboratively designed by Aboriginal community members.

Public outcomes

The outcomes of the project formed exhibitions in SLQ Gallery and kuril dhagun, the shows presented historical and contemporary artefacts, accounts and images; oral histories from Elders, artists and academics; and and immersive installation of contemporary representations of Country. Paying homage to those who’ve come before us, Art of the Skins embodied the continuous, ever-growing and adapting nature of Australia’s first cultures.

kuril dhagun, level 1

Art of the Skins in kuril dhagun showcases presented a multidisciplinary display of work inspired by the revitalisation of Aboriginal possum skin cloak making traditions.

Artists Carol McGregor and Glennys Briggs’ practices are immersed in connections between country, artistic expressions, cultural artefacts and strengthening local Aboriginal communities through exploring hidden histories and cultural practices. They aim to represent their shared connection to place, reclaiming the suppressed histories and conveying the resilience of Aboriginal cultural identity.

SLQ Gallery space

Art of the Skins shared the uncovered histories of South East Queensland’s possum skin cloaks and the story of the artists who have recently revived this practice for local Aboriginal communities.

Aboriginal artists and researchers Carol McGregor and Glennys Briggs facilitated skill-sharing workshops on the Sunshine Coast, Brisbane and Gold Coast to awaken traditions through the contemporary making of cloaks.

The workshops encouraged collaborations and the exchange of knowledge and stories. Art of the Skins has brought together families and communities, strengthening relationships and cultural connections.

One Last Apocalypse (OLA) was a six-month project that yielded a number of public activities. During this process The Edge engaged with a broad cross-section of individuals, communities and organisations.

Context The project included a series of themed pop culture book clubs, games nights and design thinking meetups which eventually progressed into five weeks of intense collaborative planning, making and the staging of three larger public activities and events led by community.

They were:

• The Last Supper celebration at the Deception Bay Library
• Cardboard Kaiju life-sized game
• Bio Crisis immersive installation

These final events attracted and engaged a wider public audience.

The OLA project was an opportunity to build on and further refine its approach to collaborative community driven projects that The Edge has delivered over the last 7 years: The Zombie Climate Apocalypse (2011, 2012, 2013) Halloween Monsters Ball (2014), and IRL Festival (2015).

Nuts and Bolts

The OLA project allowed The Edge to once again outreach to a variety of people who might not likely participate in these types of activities. This included people connected to community organisations like Flexible learning schools, Men’s Sheds, Multicultural and Youth agencies as well as a self-contained satellite program in Deception Bay.

In the community process of design thinking, making, and final events, a total of 119 people were engaged. There were 158 outreach engagements as well.

Public Outcomes of the OLA project

• One Last Apocalypse Book Club series at The Edge and in Deception Bay
• One Last Apocalypse Games nights at The Edge and in Deception Bay
• One Last Apocalypse Design Thinking Meetups at The Edge
• Bio Crisis- An immersive installation created by a group of dedicated community members.
• Cardboard Kaiju- A life size board game created with young people and community groups.

Learnings

During the OLA project, particular focus was given to documenting the unique cultural development approach to the work of empowering creative experimentation in the arts, science, technology and enterprise. The documentation of OLA, including the how to guides and templates, along with reflections from partner organisations and the arts workers on the project, will be published on The State Library of QLD public wiki platform – an open source wiki repository of all The Edge’s IP including a back catalogue of all workshop plans, designs, policies procedures.

The Future Fashion workshops were a series of intimate workshops for future fashion minded children in the Digital Futures Lab, State Library's year-long exhibition. After an introduction to the creations of the Wear Next artists, participants crafted their own costumes made from up-cycled materials, and shares their design process in a video documentary that became part of the Digital Futures Exhibition.