Warwick Thornton

After discovering that Warwick Thornton directed Samson and Delilah, I have started to do some research on the man. I originally discovered Thornton at the Samstag gallery earlier this year with his 'Stop the Gap'3D piece of an Aboriginal man floating on a cross. I was quite happy with they exhibition as I got a free bucket of popcorn with it ( maybe just a little joke Thornton wanted to throw in). This work was quite moving as it crossed the issues of religion in the aboriginal community and the relation it plays with the non indigenous community. There were many other artworks on display in this exhibition and it was real clear that there is still a massive gap between indigenous and non indigenous communities and that maybe this will one day be hopefully closed.
A quote about the exhibition from Kryztoff " idea of closing the gap between indigenous and non-indigenous worlds, whether as another Government slogan or through exhibitions such as this, is a worthy goal (as I am unsure what an alternative is that is also worthy) and this exhibition is a valuable contribution to that goal."
Below is a news link to this exhibition http://www.kryztoff.com/RAW/?tag=warwick-thornton

Image from http://www.kryztoff.com/RAW/?attachment_id=2640 (2011) A still from Warwick Thornton's Stranded

Another thought i was pondering (after all the questions that were put before me at the first lecture) about is I wonder how contempoary Indigenous Artists feel about their ancestors work being on display in museums as anthropological collections. Should they have these peices recognised as art as much as a Da Vinci ?

I found this quote interesting

"How do Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, previously captive to the anthropological gaze and to unequal power relations, not only interrogate the histories that defined them as 'other' and ‘lesser’, but also regain their voice and agency over historic cultural objects that reside in collections around the world" (http://www.artlink.com.au/issues/3120/artlink-indigenous-231-br-beauty-and-terror/#articles) (2011)