Seeing Aboriginal Art in the Gallery

Abstract

One of the great embarrassments confronting the art world in the postcolonial context is the recent history of the exclusion of much of the world's 'artistic' production from the hallowed walls of the fine art galleries of the West (Sally Price's 'civilised places'). One might ask: how was it that it was excluded for so long and who is to blame for keeping all this art out? However, rather than attributing blame, it is much more interesting to analyse the historical process of its inclusion. The excluded objects became different after they were included not because their very inclusion magically changed their status, but because the fact of their inclusion reflects changes in Western conceptions of what art is. The process of inclusion has involved three significant factors: the critique of the concept of 'primitive art', an associated change in conceptions of what can be called 'art', and an increased understanding of art as a commodity. Those factors have operated in conjunction with global political and economic processes which in some contexts have empowered the agency of Indigenous artists. In this paper I will outline my theoretical argument and then apply it briefly to the Australian context, reflecting on the history of the inclusion of Aboriginal art in galleries of fine art and the significance of that change in the discourse over Aboriginal art.