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Aboriginal art takes on new forms with some Kashmiri influence

The cross - cultural collaboration

Lands of Central , \ustralia.

An Aboriginal pattern in vibrant colours beckons to me from a loaded table. A long-time lover of the sin1ple but deeply alluring Aboriginal designs, I am instantly drawn into die swanky gift shop.

It turns out to be a cushion cover with a n embroidered Aboriginal design, something l've never seen before. There are also pillow covers, throw rugs and carry bags, in the most captivating desert patterns which I've seen before only on L'l!ge wall paintings, usually with extravagant prices. But these are simply stunning.

The embroidery on chem is distinctly lndian, I cell m)'self. l look closely; and sure enough, it's Kashrniri chain stitch, hand embroidered.

On die next cable I see more Kashmiri- ware - papier mache jewellery boxes. But tl1e painting on them is not Kashmiri - it is Aboriginal!

Is chis Kaslmiiri stuff on sale, or is it usable Aboriginal art?

Suddenly l realise why I am transfixed: this is a wonderful fusion of Kashmiri crafts and Aboriginal folk art And the result is breath - caking.

The m1dularing patterns of the desert art of rhe first Australians, lend d1emselves beautifully to rhe elegant Kashmiri chain stitch. Just as die Aboriginal an must cover the entire canvas, the Kashmiri chain stitch ceclmi9ue is traditionally worked across tl1e entire canvas, so that the base fabric is not vis.ible ar all.

Ir made perfect sense to South Australian artist Carolyn Wilson when she first encotu1tered Kashmir's beautiful stitch craft heritage, and she was quick to identify the potential for combining tlie two art forms.

While botli forms are so distinctl y different, they a.re aL~o similar in man y ways, not least that they have smvived centuries, handed down to artists and artisans from generation to generation. The techniques used are unique to both their regions, and bmh are legacies of their culture.

Ir is chis commonality that Wilson seeks om in her work wirh die arts and when she interacts witl1 people from di fferenr cultures - believing passionately that the arts can be used to create a better world. 1n fact, she even calls her organisation Better World Arts (BWA).

And thus ar BWA, a collaboration was born using the cultural craft heritage of the Kashm.ir region, and tl1e traditional art of tl1e J\.gangu

Pitjamjatjara Yankw1yt:jatjara (APY)

Rama

" ln effect, it is Australian Aboriginal art expressed via Indian Kashmiri handicrafr," says Carolyn, who first came up with the idea in 1996.

The Anangu arr forms are senr to India, whe1:e they take shape into handmade rugs and cush iom.

"Much of the work over the past l 5 years has been carried out by Sicli9 & Sons, who inherited d1e fanii1ir business from their grandfather, a Kashmiti woodcrafter of high renown in his times," Carol yn reveals. "I send them meticulous information through images, about size, finishing, colour-dye accuracy, wool but Better \Vorld J\rts would not have come so far if not for the skilled and dedicated craftsmen on the other side The finesse and subtlety of every stitch that goes into the rugs and cushions, amply reflects dieir fine skills. Tbe face that they have lived on tl1e Silk Route for centuries is so very evident from dieir world"

And Carolyn's own fondness for everything Kashmiri is just as evident from her descriptions of the "serene and beautiful" landscapes and peop le she has mel there.

The work is produced in limited editions and every product comes widi a certificate of authenticity, which ensures tliat consumers draw pride in the uniqueness of the artwork and enjoy their possession.

TI1e products are then so ld wholesale to celebrated Australian art galleries, and proErs ate shared between BWA, tl1e art centres and the Indian artisan groups.

Empowering communities

B\VA is not just about arcs: it's a lso about crearing a better world for disadvantaged communities, and as such, it has evolved into a social enterprise over the years for the Anangu people , BWA provides an opportllllity to move away from predictab le commercialised Aboriginal images wirh these new products. Equally, for the Kasluniri artisans, BWA has opened up entirely new marker.

"Australian Aboriginals do not have a manufacturing culture; and intellectual property is nor a known concept in Indian handicrafts," explains Ca.ro lyn.

The motive is co provide culturaliy appropriate and sustainab le employment for everyone involved in the projects, while still ensuring that culture and skills are retained from where they originated.

Some 50 Aboriginal artists are part of the enterprise, and more than 60 Kashmiti artisans are involv ed in producing the rugs and 25 working with the papjer mache. Thanks to B\'\IA, they are invo lv ed in sustainable, cul turally enl1ancing work, and helping preserve centu ri es' old tradition.

The Anangn artists are given royal ties from the product s And [he role of BWA does nor end by simply sharing out the monies. The challenging task i s to engage artists within the modern community and ensure that their social needs are met A s hare of the profits i s put towards commtlllit-y projects as well.

For people who come from Central Australian la nd s where cbere is no specific wo rd for art apart from 'walko', which loosely translates as "meaningful marks," the rest of the country often emerges as foreign rerrirory. They need h e lp in eve r y aspcC[ of life li ke housekeepin g, formal education , banking, health, communication etc., and access to these basic services often needs a translator. Though the government pr ovides a lot of support to Aboriginals, many need ass istanc e in effectively utilising services from in digenous community centres. This is where BWA steps in and fills the gap. The staff of BWA go beyo nd the call o f duty to ass ist the artists in every way to the best of their ability.

Ngura Wiru Winkiku Indigenous Corporatio n d1at translates approximately as 'Better \'«o rld ' Qiterally 'lovely conn tr }" al together') is the result o f persistent work by BWA in setting up a locatio n in Adelaide to serve as an exclusive space for Anangu and other aboriginal artists It is financed from die comb in ed profits of BWA and the Australian artist commwi.itics without any aid from d,c governm ent. Located in the same premi ses as the retail outlet of BWA ou die Commerc ial Road, P ort Adelaide, di.is is one place Anangu can call and identify as t heir own.

Recognition

BWA has crafted many product lines from abstract a.re, and its art pieces are showcased across the conntry Th e busin ess has

Iexpanded to retails outlets in Adelaide, Alice Springs, Canben-a, D arwin, Frerna.ndc, Hobart, Perth and Sydney. In 2008 B\'\!A was a finalist at the Telstra Business Awards in d,e Social Responsibility Category. Vogm Living magazi ne d id a major feature and BWA has found its prod ucts listed in mauy "desirable gifts" lists

The cross-cultural collaboration model has n ow been ~'\:tended to Nepal, Tibet an d Peru, and the prod u cts have diversified into lacq uerware boxes, jewellery and handbags.

And how do the A b original arti sts d1ink of their co llaboration wi d, Kashmi ti artisans?

"They reciprocate with song and dance when they see thefr abstract art take shape as ta ngible products! T o them, song, dance and art arc all i ntegrated in a oneness, reflecting an aspect of their life that cann ot be separated So there's a story associated with each and every product," says Carolyn

Parents must acknowledge that some children have learning difficulties and need support, rather than being labelled lazy

''Ijust wane to push my son," she said to me Her flailing hope was palpable.

Three months earlier 1 had received a tentative phone call at the tutoring institme I run, from a mother who was concerned about the lack of effectiveness of the combination of in-class support and also p r ivate tutoring. Her son, she said, was not W,e his older brother The o ld er brother was in Year 11 and doing so well in tbe selective schoo l. Surely the younger boy should be the same?

After one session of tutoring, my s pecial needs tutor reported that the ymmg boy had learning difficulties. The mother refused tO believe it and , in rears, said tbat this could not be true. She needed her son to be bright because that would mean he could go to a good schoo l and not the local school.

The mother refused to have the special needs turor help her son and asked if I could give a second opinion. l obtained copies of aU of the past six years of APLAN papers and started on the reading rest in order to gauge comprehension.

Ir was evident as he read aloud that the boy's reading was very poor with obvious prommciation errors such as substituting 'f' fo r 'th' and reading 'tbree' as 'free' , 'the' as 'duJi' and 'although' as ' aJdough'. Apart from this er ro r, and a failure to stop at full stops, the reading was quire slow and disjoin ted.

When answering cbe most basic of the questions on the first three pieces of stimulus, the boy did reasonably well. However, as the reading became more abstract, there were a higher proportion of incorrect responses. Thi s could be contrasted with the boy's ~pelling. His answers o n the language conventions tests were mostly correct and he displayed outstanding spelling The boy clearly had a very disparate set of abilities.

I recommended tliat the mother have rhe boy psychomet.cically 30 assessed so that any rutocing and also an y teaching t!JJ:<mgh school could be properly informed. She was reluctant Surely her son just needed to 'wo r k hard'. The cost of the resting was waived so that any issue of cost was not a factor.

The psychometric test revealed that tbe boy was well below average (bottom 3%) in te rm s of reading comprehension. However his speUing was in die 99'" percentile Moreover, be had a ver y short working m em ory.

This type of psychometric profile clearly indicated learning difficulties

At this point the mother seemed to accept rhar her needed ro be Lmderstood and she needed to make decisions about him that matched his ability However, this was only temporary.

By the encl of the week she had her son do sever al more reading tasks an d p urc hased copies of books for preparation for the selective schools exam.

1 suggested that she have him read aloud for 20 minutes a day tO i mprove his literacy and we commenced free weekly one and a half hour sessions of reading comprehension. lt was during the holidays in one of these sessions that I asked the boy how he would spend the rest of his day The boy replied , "At m y rnuder work". \Vhen l later inquired about th is with the mother sbe said rbar every day of the holidays h e had spe nt all day at work with her and that he spent the d ay learning. He had not seen any of his friends, did not see any movies and did not p lay computer games at all in the two weeks

A week later when we had a session together, rhe boy gor just over half of die 50 items correct. \Xlhen his mother was bei n g shown die work he would smile when she saw the correct responses, but would closely read her face when she saw his incorrect responses I commented that the boy appeared co be eying h is se lf -esteem co her approval and disapproval around the success of his answers. He nodded when I said rhis and she looked dow n.

J\ day later I received a phone call from die mother Li i t she stated tliar she would no longer be btinging her son to tutoring as her 'shift times had chang ed' I suggested times outs ide of her altered shift times She then said, ' 'I s till want co push him. All he has co do is stop being lazy".

At this point 1 was reminded of a parent who came to me a few years ago seeking help with his son I suggested he sr.art to understand his son by listening, ratlier than te lling him what co do

A year later the father returned for ' more wisdom'. He bad booked an hour. A quick inquiry as to what he sought 'wisdom' about was met ,vich, "!vf)' son is l azy and he never listens, though I tell him a million ci1nes".

I turned to him saying, "Las t ye ar we spent time together and you seated then that yo u would listen ro your son I nstead, all you have done is what you hav e always done a nd the outcomes are the same So, my so -called wisdom is the same as last year, hence 'ditto"'

The mother in this case was doing exactly as this father did. Ignoring their child for the sake of some pre- cast view o f what a child should be Her son was stressed tO the poior of scratching himself ro bleeding when studying with his mother at home Away from her he could concentrate and smile during tutoring He displ a)'ed resilience desp ite getting many test items incorrecL

If she ever brings her son back I will continue ro help him without c harge However, sometimes people turn away. I hope t hat the boy holds on to the memor y of m y belief in him time he is a good boy, w ho i s trying b i s best and w hoever he is, is plenty good enough.