Tell me about the piece you made with Libia and Olafur. How did it come into being and what happened during the boycott?
The work is a biomorphic sculpture. The audience is invited to sit or lie in it and listen to a narrative of visualisations that the refugees recall about their migration to Australia. It’s a very powerful work. The memories are very poignant, like the moment of saying goodbye to your family and not knowing when or if you will ever see them again.
When Libia and Olafur expressed interest in working with refugees here in Australia, [the RAP] was approached by the Biennale to make contact. We were very exited to work with them. They have a great body of work that addresses themes of migration, illegal status and refugees in the context of globalisation.
Essentially we had to wait for the artists to come to Australia to see if the collaboration was going to be possible. Obviously we were very worried about the Transfield issue. This was their first visit to Australia and they weren’t very familiar with the context so it was our role as collaborators to share that experience.
We made the mutual decision to withdraw the piece from the Biennale and at the same time organise to have the work exhibited elsewhere. The refugees involved also agreed with that decision. Of course we re-evaluated things after the Biennale cut its ties with Transfield.
Why was it so important for you to take a stand on this issue?
The RAP group had been going to Villawood Detention Centre every week for the last three years doing art classes, so we’ve seen the psychological damage that mandatory detention inflicts on refugees. Everyone is depressed and living in chronic uncertainty and there is a terribly high rate of self-harm and suicide.
We felt it very personally because a friend of ours who had been attending our art classes, Ahmad Ali Jafari, died in detention of a heart attack … He was blocked by an officer when he presented with chest pain and there is an ongoing coronial inquiry into his death.
What do you say to critics of the boycott who argue that the Belgiorno-Nettis family are true lovers of the arts and the artists who re-entered are hypocrites for accepting government funding?
I think the boycott has been wonderful for the arts in general because it has put the issue of arts funding in the spotlight … I hope it puts corporations on notice that you have to behave ethically or your sponsorship of cultural events will become an area of dispute.
If you are a company involved in something as unconscionable as an offshore prison where people are being attacked and no one is being processed, then you should expect some sort of resistance.
As taxpayers, accepting money from the Arts Council to foster the creative culture and well-being of this country is very different from taking money from a company, which is profiting from something that is not only unethical but illegal under international law.
I think Senator Brandis’ threat to punish artists who refuse private funding, is more a symptom of this government’s desire to control independent voices and would be a very draconian step.
Tell me about the role of RAP and how people can support it.
RAP provides art classes to refugees in order to facilitate self-expression, give them a voice in the public discourse and hopefully challenge some misconceptions.
People can support our work by purchasing our zines, which are filled with the drawings, poems and writings of the refugees we work with. We are also involved in the Other Worlds Zine Fair on the 25th May, organised as an alternative to the Museum of Contemporary Art’s Zine Fair, because of MCA’s involvement with Transfield.
Supportive artists may also wish to nominate pieces in future exhibitions to go towards our support work.
