Celebrating the First Aboriginal Women’s Art Festival with a special exhibition at Adelaide Festival Centre.

2025 marks the 40th anniversary of the First Aboriginal Women’s Arts Festival, a key moment in Australia’s contemporary cultural history. Black Women BACK in Focus, is a retrospective exhibition at Adelaide Festival Centre’s Artspace which celebrates its legacy and the women behind it.

Proudly supported by Adelaide Festival Centre Foundation, the exhibition brings together rare photographs, archival materials, and firsthand stories from the Aboriginal women who were at the forefront of the festival in 1985. Curated festival memorabilia, historical photographs, and personal accounts allow visitors to experience the groundbreaking event that united Aboriginal women nationwide to celebrate their culture and songlines through visual arts, dance, music, theatre, and ceremony.

Performers (L-R) Nancy Bates, Sonya Rankine, Aunty June Mills, Aunty Betty Sumner. — Image: Colleen Strangways

Speaker Aunty Jo Willmot. — Image: Colleen Strangways

The First Aboriginal Women's Arts Festival was a transformative event that highlighted the resilience, talent, and spirit of Aboriginal women, many of whom are now regarded as leaders in their respective fields.

This exhibition honours and celebrates the continuing artistic legacy, showcasing how the festival paved the way for future generations of Aboriginal artists and performers.

“Black Women BACK in Focus and Adelaide Festival Centre will be honouring and celebrating the 40th Anniversary of the very First Contemporary National Aboriginal Women’s Arts Festival. We encourage you to join us for this event. We will be sharing an exhibition of many of the highlights for this event of reconnecting the Songlines and invite your participation and support.”

— Aboriginal Elder and proud Wakka Wakka woman and the Cultural Consultant on Black Women Back in Focus Jo Willmot

Black Women BACK in Focus install view — Image: Annie Egerton

Aunty Betty Sumner sings. — Image: Colleen Strangways

Aunty Jo, Aunty Sandra and Nici Cumpston taken during Aunty June’s speech — Image: Colleen Strangways

Aunty Jo Willmot looking into display case. — Image: Colleen Strangways

“The opening event for Black Women BACK in Focus was full of love and light. Opening the event was a joint Welcome to Country delivered by Aunty Lynette Crocker and Aunty Rosalind Coleman. Speeches were presented by Chairperson of Black Women in Focus Jo Willmot and Black Women in Focus Co-ordinator Shereen Rankine. The speeches given by both gave such raw energy and real experiences of Black Women working in and navigating areas they have never before and especially within white systems.

There was a real energy shift in the room after hearing these two women speak, an effect that was very much reinforced with the stories shared by Aunty June Mills, the eldest of the Mills Sisters who performed as a musician with the Mills Sisters and composed much of the music for Tjindarella. Aunty June was flown down from Darwin to join Aunty Betty Sumner, Nancy Bates, and Sonya Rankine performing original songs from the play.

I want to draw attention to the words of Uncle Gary Foley in his interview on display in the exhibition that "all the women I have ever met in Adelaide are members of the Staunch club", and after working alongside them to bring this retrospective exhibition to life, I can absolutely confirm this to be true.”

– Jayda Wilson, First Nations Programming Co-ordinator, Adelaide Festival Centre

This one-of-a-kind retrospective exhibition, brings art, history and, culture together to honour the powerful legacy of the First Aboriginal Women’s Arts Festival and its ongoing influence on Australia’s artistic landscape.

Black Women BACK in Focus opened Friday 1 February at Adelaide Festival Centre’s Artspace until 29 March 2025. Gallery opening hours are Friday and Saturdays from 10am – 3pm.

Artspace is proudly supported by Adelaide Festival Centre Foundation.