Plans to convert Museum of Sydney into Indigenous cultural hub scrapped over ‘colonial’ era links

Aboriginal artists have slammed the state government, accusing it of “double standards” after it backed away from plans to transform the Museum of Sydney into a dedicated Aboriginal cultural space.

The planned conversion of the museum was aimed at showcasing Indigenous culture.

Aboriginal artists have hit out at the state government for scrapping plans to convert one of Sydney’s largest museums into a dedicated Indigenous cultural hub amid concerns the site was unsuitable due to its “colonial” era links.

The NSW Labor government has backed away from plans to transform the Museum of Sydney into the city’s first dedicated Aboriginal cultural space, citing fears the proposal was in the “wrong location”.

The former Coalition government announced the planned conversion back in 2022, saying the move was aimed at showcasing the “voices, significant stories, truths and histories of Aboriginal culture and people.”

But current Arts Minister John Graham has now revealed the site is no longer being pursued due to the “colonial settlement” history of the museum, which was built on the ruins of the house of Arthur Phillip, the first governor of the convict colony of NSW.

The decision has sparked criticism from some Sydney artists including Blak Douglas, a previous winner of the Archibald Prize, who accused the state government of “making excuses”.

The museum conversion plan was announced in 2022.

Mr Graham, however, said the Museum of Sydney was the “wrong place” for an Indigenous cultural hub.

“I’m keen to see the Museum of Sydney recognise the important Indigenous heritage of the city, but I think it would be too much of a burden to have it be the only place that happened,” he said.

At the time of the initial announcement in 2022, then-Premier Dominic Perrottet said the proposal was part of the Coalition government’s broader commitment to deliver outcomes for Aboriginal people and the wider community.

A bust of Arthur Phillip is located at the museum.

Sydney artist Blak Douglas.

Blak Douglas believes the colonial past of the museum site should not be an “excuse” for not pursuing the conversion.

“It’s somewhat hypocritical for the government not to consider it when Aboriginal people have raised concerns about other sites and the colonial Captain Cook statue in Hyde Park, and the government hasn’t done anything about that,” he said.

“To me, it’s just an excuse. To call this building out for being colonial is a double standard”

Arts Minister John Graham.

Indigenous artist Nicole Monks said there was a need for a dedicated space for Indigenous culture in Sydney, noting many works were currently split across different museums.

Artists have pointed out that Sydney has dedicated museums for photography, the armed forces, justice and police, the maritime industry, trams and buses.

However, the city does not have a dedicated Indigenous museum.

“A lot of visitors who come to Sydney want to engage and have respect for the culture, and the fact we don’t have a dedicated place for that is embarrassing” she said.

Despite not pursuing the Museum of Sydney plans, Mr Graham said the government was still committed to having a museum dedicated to Aboriginal culture.

He added it was a “real problem in Sydney that there is not an easy place to learn about the oldest continuous living culture in the world”.

The proposed conversion of the museum, as announced in 2022, included “reinterpreting and contextualising” the existing museum collection to represent Aboriginal stories and perspectives.