Kent Morris’ exhibition ‘Cultural Reflections – Up Above and Unvanished’ was recently shown at Richmond Town Hall, as part of our Town Hall Exhibition Program.

Following his exhibition, we caught up with Kent to talk about his experience, and the meaning behind the works.

“These works express the importance of First Nations’ history, story and philosophies; being understood and being shared and being incorporated into our everyday lives.”

In this video, Kent talks about documenting his cultural journey and experiences of walking on Country where he lives and works and the absence of Aboriginal culture around the built environment.

The interaction of Native birds with the built environment; reshaped from a First Nations lens, reveals the continuing presence and patterns of Aboriginal history, culture, and knowledge in the contemporary Australian landscape.

“From a First Nations world view, nothing is more important than Country, caring for Country and caring for the environment as opposed to Western views around the individual at the expense of the environment.”

His works reveal the continuing presence and patterns of First Nations history, knowledge and culture in the contemporary Australian landscape, despite ongoing colonial interventions. Morris states that, “the rhythms, shapes and designs of our ancestors are ever-present and form the first layer of many that have been overlaid. When I walk, I see, experience and recreate these rhythms, shapes and designs; they are changed yet continuous”.

Learning form the rhythm and habits of native birds in contemporary spaces, Morris notes how birds “have adapted to the built environment, to technology and colonialism”, reflecting the ways in which First Nations cultures continue to survive and adapt. In their songs and flight - which form an intrinsic part of Indigenous cultural knowledge and spirituality - Morris sees “the complexity of contemporary Indigenous experience constantly being created and revealed”.

The City of Yarra Exhibition Program offers opportunities for artists at all stages of their career to showcase their work and make creative use of our venues. It also provides our locals and the wider community an opportunity to enjoy arts and culture as an everyday experience.

‘Cultural Reflections – Up Above' and 'Unvanished’ was exhibited at Richmond Town Hall between Friday 3 December 2021 to Friday 25 February.