Learn how a festival in the Australian desert connects to the art of dance and performance in Indigenous cultures. Jennifer's talk reflects on Kluge-Ruhe’s exhibition "Performing Country" with an emphasis on the vital work of embodied knowledge and survival in contemporary arts practices. Focusing on the Central and Western Desert, this talk considers the importance of performance in the Lajamanu Warlpiri festival Milpirri, co-produced with Tracks Dance Company since 2005.
Jennifer L. Biddle is Gough Whitlam and Malcom Fraser Chair in Australian Studies (Harvard University) and Associate Dean Engagement and Impact, Faculty of Arts, Design & Architecture (University of New South Wales). She has worked with Warlpiri people in Lajamanu for three decades, and more recently, in transnational projects with First Nations and Indigenous artists, curators and designers on experimental new media research.
