Blak In-JusticeIncarceration and Resilience

Through a compelling selection of artworks, Blak In-Justice: Incarceration and Resilience calls attention to the pressing issue of Indigenous incarceration in Australia. Curated by Kent Morris, Barkindji artist, curator and Creative Director of The Torch, the groundbreaking exhibition has been developed in partnership with Heide Museum of Modern Art. It presents works by leading First Nations artists including Vernon Ah Kee, Gordon Bennett, Destiny Deacon, Julie Dowling, Jimmy Pike and Judy Watson that address the overrepresentation of Indigenous Australians in the criminal justice system and the crisis of deaths in custody. Their powerful responses are shown alongside the remarkable creative achievements of former and current prison inmates, many of whom have connected with their culture and Country through The Torch program, such as Thelma Beeton, Stacey Edwards, Robby Wirramanda and Sean Miller. Works by Jimmy Pike, Albert Namatjira, Gordon Syron and Kevin Gilbert who experienced incarceration during their lives are also included.

First Nations Australians make up 3% of the Australian population yet represent 32% of the national adult prison population. Indigenous men are 17 times more likely to go to prison than non-Indigenous men and First Nations women are 25 times more likely to go to prison than non-Indigenous women. Since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody in 1991, incarceration rates for Indigenous Australians have more than doubled and deaths in custody have continued to increase. Of all young people in detention, 63% are First Nations who only make up 5.7% of the Australian population aged 10–17.

Blak In-Justice makes an engaging and important contribution to public discourse about First Nations injustice and the power of cultural practices. It also highlights the vital role of art in First Nations communities and Australian society in raising awareness, sharing stories and creating change.