FRONT: DUALITY- ELIZABETH CLOSE (SA)

Elizabeth’s practice broadly, is an acknowledgment and declaration of Aboriginal Sovereignty and Connection to Country. Our relationship to this continent is something profound and immeasurable. We are a part of the landscape and the landscape is a part of us. But Duality is a body of work that speaks to an exploration of Aboriginality and ultimately  identity.

Duality unpacks what it means to piece one's identity back together after it has been ravaged by violent colonial practices and policies. How does one look to the past in order to move forward as an Aboriginal woman; with the agency and autonomy that her ancestors wished for her, but the intergenerational trauma bourne from overcoming immense adversity? Can she ever truly walk in both worlds?

Dualities explores this dichotomy of confusion, longing and belonging in a body of work that is profoundly informed by the artist’s lived experience. Through a variety of mediums she asks the question; what do we value? Do we value the perspectives of Aboriginal Australia, or do we simply seek their culture, but not their struggle?