Healing through art: My practice

Abstract

Many issues affect the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Australia. For more than a decade we have experienced many strategies implemented by governments to address the disparities experienced in our health and wellbeing. It has been recognised that new approaches are required because Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities are seeking culturally appropriate services. New approaches are required because Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities are sick of culturally inappropriate services. We have had enough.

This thesis describes my healing journey and the journeys of the people I have worked with as a visual artist focused on healing. It is a story of resilience, of strength and of drawing from our culture and kinship structures to interrupt the intergenerational trauma that continues to impact on my people. I use my art to describe my journey as I write this thesis, as art is the way I best express my thoughts, my feelings and my own journey of healing.

This research demonstrates the importance of applying an Indigenous lens in developing different approaches to healing through the intergenerational trauma experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. It explores the questions: What is meant by healing through arts practices within an Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander context? What are the foundations of my healing through art practices? How does my art bring together the expression of my culture and my strong Christian beliefs? How does my artwork and my art teaching heal in my community? What can others learn from my art practice and its relationship to healing?