Unveiling Hidden Histories: In Conversation with Dr. Fiona Foley

FORUM is a platform that fosters industry connections to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists, architects, and creative practitioners. We are thrilled to announce our next session with Dr. Fiona Foley, focusing on the crucial role that public art plays in weaving narratives into the fabric of our urban landscapes, cities, and public spaces.

Dr. Fiona Foley has been engaged with the development of urban Aboriginal art in Australia since she was one of the ten founding members of the Boomalli Aboriginal Artist Co-operative in 1987. The collective, which she was a part of, played a major role in advocacy for Aboriginal artists and Aboriginal curators within state institutions, employment in higher education, and as independent writers on Aboriginal art. This period marked the beginning of an art movement that has created successive generations of urban Aboriginal artists who are now part of the nation’s accepted cultural fabric.

Since those early initiatives, Foley has remained an advocate for promoting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art and cultural knowledge as part of the growing understanding in Australia and more broadly. Her art practice is research-led and spans over 35 years.

Foley has worked in the area of public art with major commissions held at Parliament House, Canberra, Museum of Sydney, Melbourne Museum, State Library of Queensland, and Brisbane Magistrates Court. She has also developed public art works in regional Queensland at Maryborough, contributed a major series of works to Mackay’s Bluewater Trail, and at Yarrabilba outside Brisbane. She has established long working relationships with industry leaders throughout Australia and overseas.

Major public sculptures include:

The Edge of Trees, Museum of Sydney, Sydney 1995

The Lie of the Land, Melbourne Museum, Melbourne 1997

Tribute to A’vang, Parliament House, Canberra 2001 

Winged Harvest, The Australian National University, Canberra 2001

Witnessing to Silence, Brisbane Magistrates Court, Brisbane 2004

Bible and Bullets, Redfern Park, Sydney 2008

Little Treasures, Hamilton Northshore Playscape, Brisbane 2008

Black Opium, State Library of Queensland, Brisbane 2009

Sugar Cubes, Mackay Regional Council, Mackay 2009

Gilla (native bee), Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital, Brisbane 2014

As I moved into the area of public art in the mid 1990s, I wanted to write Aboriginal nations, Aboriginal culture and Aboriginal history back into the visual landscape. This has been the premise for my public art commissions over three decades.

This conversation is particularly pertinent given the deep history and culturally significant stories encapsulated in Foley's artworks, shedding light on underrepresented stories. We are pleased to collaborate with UAP for this instalment of FORUM. UAP's sponsorship of this event allows us to delve deeper into the exploration of visual art and the myriad of impacts it has on society, culture, and public space.

This event is Sponsored by UAP