Transcript: Parliament House exhibition.
The After 200 Years photographic exhibition opened to the public over the weekend at Parliament House as part of 50th anniversary celebrations of the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS).
The exhibition revisits the After 200 Years photographic project of 1988, with a display of stunning and often thought provoking images.
Over 50,000 images were collected in partnership with communities throughout Australia, documenting the different lifestyles of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people during the late 1980s living in remote and urban communities.
After 200 Years was a large undertaking for AIATSIS, with over 20 Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal photographers living and working with selected community members in their communities.
AIATSIS Access and Client Services Manager, Alana Harris said these images reflect the unique relationship between AIATSIS and communities, the significance for communities in being partners in research that is important to them, and the value of the resulting collections.
“I think it’s a real privilege to be invited to have an exhibition here. We’re very proud to be able to show some of our material at Parliament House and to be able to show the general community what it is that we do and why it is so important to take material back to the original owners,” Alana said.
“I think it’s really worthwhile for people to come to Parliament House and have a look and celebrate AIATSIS’ 50th birthday.”
This exhibition includes a ‘thank you’ panel that shares many messages of gratitude from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community members thanking AIATSIS for repatriating copies of audiovisual material through the Return of Material to Indigenous Communities (ROMTIC) program.
Held in the general circulation space for the public adjacent to the Presiding Officer's Exhibition Area on the House of Representatives side, the exhibition runs from Saturday 24 May 2014 to Sunday 13 July 2014.
Download media release
Media enquiries
P: 02 6246 1605
commsmedia@aiatsis.gov.au