ONE SUN, ONE MOON
Aboriginal Art in Australia

“All over the world nobody different family, all the same family. One sun, one moon...”
Paddy Fordham Wainburranga

A new book published by the Art Gallery of New South Wales, celebrates Aboriginal culture, country and community.

Aboriginal art is the world’s oldest continuing cultural tradition, celebrating a heritage that is complex, intriguing and continually responsive to historical change and social circumstance.

One Sun, One Moon brings together many of the finest Aboriginal artists of our time. Through their works - held in three major Australian collections: the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, the Holmes à Court Collection, Heytesbury, and the Art Gallery of New South Wales - these artists honour their inheritance and lay the cultural foundations for future generations. The extraordinary opportunity to collaborate and celebrate the treasures from within three distinguished and complementary collections has offered unparalleled access in scoping the phenomenon of Indigenous art in Australia.

Featuring over 240 colour plates, One Sun, One Moon canvasses a diverse range of Aboriginal art practice. The 27 essays by leading authorities and 13 interviews with key artists are accompanied by an extensive chronology.

From Rover Thomas’ ochred landscapes, to the dynamic fibre art of artists around the country, to the lyrical watercolours of Central Australia, and the multimedia art of a younger generation of urban artists, One Sun, One Moon invites us on an incredible imaginative journey into the heart and history of Australia.

Each of the artist’s interviews offers an intimate account of their lives, inspiration and vision. Contributors to One Sun, One Moon include Hetti Perkins, Marcia Langton, John Mawurndjul, Margie West, Howard Morphy, Fred Myers, Banduk Marika, Jon Altman, Christine Nicholls, Brenda L Croft and many others.

One Sun, One Moon was funded by the Australia Council, through the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Board and Visual Arts/Craft Fund. Other key sponsors of this project include the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Holmes à Court Collection, Heytesbury and Qantas.

Book and exhibition launch details:
One Sun, One Moon will be launched by Edmund Capon, Director, Art Gallery of New South Wales on Monday 2 July 2007 at 6pm.

One Sun, One Moon: Aboriginal art in Australia is published by the Art Gallery of New South Wales ($120).

An exhibition of works illustrated in the book, from the collection of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, will open in the Yiribana gallery on 3 July 2007. Admission is free.