Probe smacks of power politics

Indigenous artists deserve a thorough and proper investigation into claims of unethical practices at the APY Arts Centre Collective, which has been accused of bullying and artistic interference. So it is dismaying to learn one of the nation’s most senior arts academics has been removed from the probe. As we report on Monday, Brenda Croft, head of Indigenous art history at the Australian National University, was asked to be part of the probe by SA Arts Minister Andrea Michaels but on Friday was telephoned and told she was “not the right fit” before three panellists with significantly less direct experience in art were named.

The panel will include two Indigenous people, Megan Krakouer from Western Australia and Cameron Costello from Queensland, alongside senior South Australian barrister Anne Sibree. Ms Krakouer, a Menang woman, is an expert on Indigenous trauma and worked on the National Justice Project, while Mr Costello, a Quandamooka man, is deputy chair of the Queensland Tourism Council. He was once a program manager in a government initiative to develop a sustainable Indigenous art industry in that state.

Professor Croft alleges she was disqualified because she was “just not the right type of Aborigine” as she was known for speaking her mind and has absolute intellectual rigour and knowledge in the area being investigated. She claims the decision to remove her goes to the top, federal Arts Minister Tony Burke – an allegation he denies. The APYACC has been thrown into chaos and a major Australian National Gallery exhibition deferred and put in doubt as a result of a months-long investigation by Greg Bearup into claims white supervisors had routinely interfered in paintings that were sacred to the Indigenous artists without properly declaring this to be the case. The reports have prompted a backlash from APYACC, which denies wrongdoing, but artists have praised the reporting for blowing the whistle. Five Indigenous artists and six white studio assistants made allegations to The Australian of white interference in the sacred paintings that represent Tjukurpa, ancient stories of culture and law.

The Indigenous arts body that stands for the ethical treatment of artists, the Indigenous Art Code, has cancelled the APYACC’s membership of the group. It found APYACC under the leadership of Skye O’Meara to be ethically unsuitable to continue as a member. Throughout it all Ms O’Meara has doggedly remained in charge despite calls for her to stand down. Those calls extend to the SA Arts Minister, who told The Australian she “suspected it would be more difficult” for the investigation to be conducted fairly while Ms O’Meara remained at the helm of the APYACC and that she would like to see her step aside.

The slow progress of the investigation and removal of Professor Croft from the probe adds to a perception that powerful figures are protecting their patch. This only makes the need for a proper inquiry more urgent. The rights of Indigenous artists and the public interest in the workings of the nation’s arts bureaucracy are firmly aligned.