Aboriginal Art in Melbourne

What is Aboriginal art?

Aboriginal art is part of the culture of Australian Aboriginal people who have lived on the Australian continent for over 50,000 years. They represent the longest continuous culture to be found anywhere on earth. Examples of Aboriginal art are found in caves and rock shelters, and the oldest of these have been dated back at least 18,000 years.

When did Aboriginal art start / how old is Aboriginal art?

Aboriginal art is part of the oldest continuous living culture in world history, with Australian Aboriginal people having settled on the Australian continent somewhere between 60,000 and 80,000 years ago. Evidence of Aboriginal culture is found in the rock art, which so far has been dated back at least 20,000 years, while archaeology has dated ancient campsites back to 50,000 to 65,000 years. Contemporary Aboriginal art is considered to start at the desert community of Papunya in 1971, when senior desert men began to paint their cultural stories using modern materials. This was prompted by school teacher Geoffrey Bardon requesting that school children paint their own stories, leading the senior men to open up their deeply held cultural knowledge to outside observers. The Papunya Tula desert art movement then influenced other communities to join the art movement through the following decades.

Where did Aboriginal art come from?

Australian Aboriginal people had two traditional forms of communication. These were oral storytelling and song as well as visual communication through drawing, painting and the use of ceremonial design. There was no written language, however for many survival depended on the ability to remember where food and water sources could be found at different times of the year. Aboriginal artists often paint maps of Country showing important landmarks. They often use an aerial perspective even when they have never been in a plane.

What is “Dreaming” (or “Dreamtime”) in Aboriginal art?

At the heart of Aboriginal culture and therefore of Aboriginal art, is the Creation law set down in the Dreaming, which provides the identity for traditional Aboriginal people and their connection to the land. Dreamtime is one translation of the Creation time for Aboriginal people, other terms often seen are Jukurrpa and Tingari - the term used varies according to the particular local language. Many Aboriginal artists paint aspects of their Dreaming, which forms part of their inheritance and their identity.

Read More: Aboriginal Art and the Dreamtime

Can I learn about specific Dreaming stories (e.g., Seven Sisters, Water Dreaming)?

Yes, Japingka’s guides cover stories like Seven Sisters (Pleiades) and Water Dreaming, explaining cultural context and how artists depict them.

Read More: Aboriginal Dreamtime Stories

What is dot painting and where did it come from?

Australian Aboriginal dot paintings are typical of a style of art works from the Central and Western Desert. They are a medium for telling stories and enlivening culture.

Read More: Aboriginal Dot Painting