Wayne Quilliam 2009 NAIDOC Artist of the Year

Aboriginal photographer/videographer and artist Wayne Quilliam has been awarded what is considered one of the most prestigious Australian art accolades: 2009 NAIDOC Aboriginal Artist of the Year.

Wayne is considered one of Australia’s most prominent Aboriginal photographic artists working on the global stage with more than 130 solo and group exhibitions in Australia Europe Asia and the USA 35 in the past 18 months. His recent shows in Berlin and Vienna attracted capacity crowds and were extended for 3 months and featured on BBC television. It was estimated his Sorry more than a Word exhibition at Parliament House in Canberra was seen by more than two hundred thousand people.
His unique style encompasses the spiritual and artistic dimensions of Aboriginal culture and his art is transformed through traditional and modern practices including developing a world first technique that infuses the artwork with traditional ochre’s and plant dyes. Wayne is highly sought after by Australian and International organisations to product culturally appropriate images that accurately represent his people. His work includes documenting every significant Indigenous event of the past 15 years including the Apology 1967 Referendum Flight Garma, Laura, Burunga, Dreaming Festivals. He won the 2008 Human Rights Award for his work on the Apology with the Koori Mail and was a finalist in the prestigious Walkley Awards for a social documentary on the block in Redfern, Sydney.

He presently has exhibitions at the National Museum in Canberra, Art Centre Berlin, Germany, PaRing Gallery, Melbourne and is headlining the Ballart International Photo Biennale; he will open new exhibitions in Tokyo Japan, Dusseldorf Germany and Sydney in October. His ˜Sorry-more than a word’ exhibition that was opened by the Prime Minister at Parliament House in Canberra earlier this year will open at the Garma Festival in the Northern Territory in August, from the capital to the bush.
www.waynequilliamphotography.com.au

Contact: Samantha Faradaiys prmedia@optusnet.com.au
Wayne Quilliam wqphotography@optusnet.com.au
Ph 0413 812222