The Cairns Indigenous Art Fair will begin its 15th anniversary season on Saturday July 13 in the Cairns CBD with the second annual instalment of BLAKtivation, a live and free First Nations festival destined to surprise guests with a delightful serving of art and culture.
- CIAF will culturally infuse Cairns CBD with its live and free satellite event, BLAKtivation, this Saturday, 13 July 2024, from 2 pm to 5.30 pm, and nightly illuminations from 6 pm to 10 pm (13 July to CIAF close, Sunday, 28 July 2024).
- BLAKtivation will engage, enlighten and entertain visitors with a program of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural dance from Patty Banjo Patterson and Mabuiag, Miriki, Guubaw Goeyga, DIDG troupes, poetry and storytelling from Shaun Creek, Mob Markets, and after-dark digital projections of art animations and sculptural illuminations featuring Melanie Hava Art in collaboration with Bonemap.
From 2 pm until 5.30 pm in the Shields Street cultural precinct spanning the Cairns Esplanade and Lake Street, a program of artistic and contemporary dance performances, poets, storytellers, and Mob Markets will inject a colourful vibe into the inner city. In an added treat for visitors, sundown will see the area light up with illuminated sculptural installations and digital projections from 6 pm to 10 pm and every night thereafter until the close of CIAF 2024 (13 July to 28 July).
Launched in 2023 to warm up the cultural precinct of Cairns with First Nations arts and culture ahead of CIAF’s annual event, BLAKtivation leverages community collaboration and partnerships to showcase the creativity, talent, and cultural ways of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
In 2024, visitors to BLAKtivation will discover creativity, culture, and a range of deadly products from the newly formed Mob Markets collective. They will also see stunning sculptural light illuminations featuring Melanie Hava Art in collaboration with Bonemap, and students from Trinity Bay High School, Bentley Park College and Kuranda District State College.
In addition, an entertainment program will be presented throughout the afternoon, featuring contemporary Indigenous dance performances from Patty Banjo Patterson, Miriki Performing Arts, traditional dancing by the Deaf Indigenous Dance Group (DIDG), Guubaw Goeyga Dancers and Mabuaig Torres Strait Islander Dancers, and performances from storytellers and poets.
One half of Mob Markets' founding duo, Lia Pa‘apa‘a, said they are excited to represent a curated selection of quality First Nations arts and wares from Gimuy and its surroundings, which showcase cultural diversity, products, and business models.
From 2 pm to 5.30 pm, BLAKtivation visitors can browse and buy jewellery from Brosiscus, vegan hair and body care from Au Sissy Natural Beauty, art, fashion and accessories from Perfectly Imperfect and TTPOP, Kaizi’s coconut oil and essential blends, and unique art pieces from Our Cultural Conversations.
According to Ms Pa’apa‘a, Mob Markets is a First Nations and Global Indigenous project established in response to the NO vote in 2023.
“Both co-founder Talicia Minniecon and I recognised the need to provide culturally and creatively safe spaces for our community to amplify their excellence, support each other, and celebrate arts and culture here in the tropical north.
“For BLAKtivation, we will be featuring artists who will not showcase their work as part of CIAF’s official programming later this month. It is all about sharing the love,” Ms Pa’apa‘a said.
CIAF’s Artistic Director Francoise Lane said BLAKtivation is about educating, enlightening, and engaging visitors to the city’s CBD. BLAKtivation is CIAF’s first official satellite event—which, following its introduction in 2023, effectively extends the event’s official annual programming while expanding the city’s First Nations cultural footprint.
According to Ms Lane, BLAKtivation is a portmanteau play on words; BLAK, a word created by one of Australia’s leading Indigenous artists, Destiny Deacon, to reclaim a colonialist word to develop a means of self-definition and expression (by taking the ‘c’ out of black), and the noun Activation, to make capable of action.
BLAKtivation is funded by the Office of the Arts and made possible with support from Arts Queensland's Queensland Arts Showcase Program, Cairns Regional Council, Bonemap Intermedia, Renew Cairns, and AFL Cape York House.
BLAKtivation will be held in the Shields Street cultural precinct, between Abbott Street and Lake Street, Cairns, on Saturday, 13 July 2024. The entertainment program will run from 2 pm to 5.30 pm, Mob Markets from 2 pm to 5.30 pm and illuminations and projections after dark from 6 pm to 10 pm every night from Saturday, 13 July to Sunday, 28 July 2024.
IMAGES:
Deaf Indigenous Dance Group, BLAKtivation 2023 (top)
Miriki Performing Arts (middle)
Au Sissi market stall (bottom)