Audio on demand

An exploration of the term ‘urban’, whether it is an appropriate reference for Indigenous people living in Australian cities, and the many ways Indigenous culture is expressed in these environments.

An examination of the expression of Indigenous culture and identity by a dynamic group of contemporary artists and authors. Explores the impact the ‘art’ movement has had on Indigenous people and how cultural material can be ‘read’ as documentary text.

Historian Philip Jones re-examines evidence found in the Simpson Desert in 1938, which prompted a search for the Ludwig Leichhardt’s lost expedition. He argues the search party may have discovered an Aboriginal burial site.

Historian Greg Dening examines the cultural achievements of the Sea of Islands or Pacific peoples with a particular focus on Tupaia, a priest of Oro, who joined Captain James Cook on the Endeavour.

Curator Doreen Mellor examines the life-changing consequences for Australian Indigenous peoples of Captain James Cook’s first Pacific journey, and subsequent European settlement, as the background to the story of the Stolen Generations.

Historian Paul Tapsell discusses how artefacts in Joseph Banks’ collection from Captain James Cook’s first voyage to the Pacific can be viewed as ‘taonga’, or Maori treasured possessions.

Historian Angela Philp explores Aboriginal art and culture, and the tensions between aesthetics, history and politics that have been critical in the institutional histories of the National Museum of Australia and the National Gallery of Australia.

Curator David Kaus provides an overview of the Aboriginal material in the National Museum of Australia’s National Historical Collection.