67 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists will exhibit at the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory (MAGNT) as finalists in the 2020 Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Awards (NATSIAA). It is Australia’s longest-running Indigenous art award with 37 years in tow and is contemporary in its mandate of exhibiting works created in the last 12 months, which have not been shown before or on sale. Winners announced on 7 August, will share in $80,000 across seven categories.

Dean Cross, Don’ Tread On Me, Telstra NATSIAA 2019. Courtesy the artist and Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin
Amala Groom, Cassie Leatham, Krystal Hurst and Ryan Presley are some of the finalists involved. Brisbane-based artist Presley describes his new painting Crown Land (till the ends of the earth) as one which ‘considers the pressures on Aboriginal people and communities by colonialism in the contemporary era. Pressures such as NTER policies that are still in effect, mining and exploitative industries in the region and local ramifications from global conflict.’ As the only finalist from New South Wales, Groom’s work, which combines a found object and painting and is titled The Fifth Element is ‘a demonstrative reminder that we are ngumbaay-dyil (all together in one place – “all are one”).’

Gunybi Ganambarr, Found, Telstra NATSIAA 2019. Courtesy the artist and Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin
Hurst celebrates the stories of her people and their connection to the environment, this time inspired by their enduring connection to the sea; on her shell necklace comprised of banded kelp shells, pippies, fishing line and seaweed, the Canberra-based artist says ‘While making this piece, I thought of my mother, my grandmothers and many Ancestors before. I imagined the type of adornment they wore to feel strong and proud.’ Leatham is also inspired by nature and storytelling, looking to the Wedge Tailed Eagle which plays an important role; ‘Bundjils strong wings while in flight released feathers, then once hitting the earth they started the Creation process, and my work represents just that.’