Darwin’s Lee brothers win coveted NAIDOC art award

23 April 2008

Darwin artists Duwun (Tony) Lee and Laniyuk (Ian) Lee have won the prestigious National NAIDOC Art Award for 2008 with a striking collaborative piece titled Advanced Australia Fair?

The brothers’ artwork was judged best in a field of 100 entries from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists across Australia, including some from remote desert communities and, for the first time, the Torres Strait. The competition carries a prize of $5,000.

The winning image features the word ‘Sorry’ on a vibrant red and orange background, with an emu and kangaroo (both in ochre) in the foreground. These are surrounded by the Southern Cross, which is connected by bold, wavy black lines.

“For the background, we have used the colours of the land, the sorry is in blue representing water and a healing point,” the Lee brothers said. “The Southern Cross is in the colours of the sunset, the time when it first comes out. The lines connecting the Southern Cross represent the spirits of our ancestors that are looking down on us and keeping an eye on us…(and) the orange is power and knowledge that they have and have given.”

The emu and the kangaroo from the Australian coat of arms have been swapped left to right “to represent the switch in the Government’s attitude” with its decision to apologise to members of the Stolen Generations.

Chairperson of the National NAIDOC Committee, Aden Ridgeway, said the committee had been very pleased with the standard of entries and the fact that they had come from all parts of the country.

“I congratulate Duwun and Laniyuk Lee on winning the competition with their wonderful work. This is a prestigious award that is getting harder to win each year as an increasing number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists take the opportunity to showcase their talent,” Mr Ridgeway said.

The winning artwork will be reproduced on the 2008 NAIDOC Week poster, which will be distributed to Indigenous Coordination Centres and direct to the public across Australia over the coming weeks. To order free copies of the poster, please call 1800 050 009.

Advance Australia Fair? is the theme for this year’s NAIDOC Week – the annual celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and achievement – which will run from 6 to 13 July.

The theme encourages Australians to reflect on the principle of a “fair go” and to consider the inequalities still experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.

Mr Ridgeway urged people to nominate local Indigenous community members for the National NAIDOC Awards 2008, to be announced at the National NAIDOC Ball in Canberra, which has been chosen as the focus city for 2008 NAIDOC Week.

The awards recognise significant contributions across all fields, including music, art, culture, education, sport, employment and politics. Award nominations close on Wednesday, 30 April 2008.

For more information on NAIDOC Week, and to nominate for the NAIDOC Awards please visit the NAIDOC website

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