South Australian Arts Minister Andrea Michaels on Friday referred the controversial Indigenous arts body to the Office of the Registrar of Indigenous Corporations and the Australian Consumer & Competition Commission for further investigation.

Both have the power to initiate criminal and civil proceedings.

The move to take action against the APYACC follows a long-running investigation by The Australian, in which artists, studio staff and others raised serious allegations about white studio staff painting on Indigenous canvases, serious allegations of fraud and claims of bullying of both staff and artists.

Sources close to the tri-­government review have told The Weekend Australian the panel found “substantial wrongdoing” in every area it was tasked to investigate after spending six months interviewing more than 200 people from the sector.

The panel has found substantial evidence supporting allegations of white hands on black art, attempts to conceal the interference of white staff, and failures to provide a safe workplace for ­artists. It has also collated evidence about the APYACC’s handling of payments to artists, the ­authenticity of its applications for government funding and its management practices.

The Weekend Australian ­understands prominent artists were flown or bussed this week from the APY Lands to Adelaide, where APYACC general manager Skye O’Meara was rallying them to support her.

APYACC board members, Sally Scales and Sandra Pumani, and Ms O’Meara were contacted for comment. At the time of publication The Weekend Australian had not received replies.

ORIC and ACCC spokespeople said they had received the referrals and were considering them.

White hands on black art: an investigation

‘She’d pick up a brush … she knows how white fellas view art’

A four-month investigation uncovers stunning new claims — and footage — over the level of white involvement in bringing APY Lands’ prized art to gallery walls | Watch the video

In the frame: APY art centre to face probe

The APY Arts Centre Collective faces investigation for possible criminal or civil charges after a six-month probe into the controversial organisation sparked by The Australian.

White hands, cash and ‘coercive control’

Indigenous artist Jennifer Inkatji had just started a new painting when she left Skye O’Meara’s studio for dialysis treatment. She returned to find it finished and up for sale | WATCH

APY art chief must step aside: integrity tsar

An investigation into the APY Art Centre Collective will ‘forever be under a cloud’ while manager Skye O’Meara remains, a public integrity advocate says.

Claims of white hands on black art: ‘Can I juice this one up a little bit?’

​Serious claims and confronting video evidence about white involvement in the making of Indigenous art have been levelled at one of Australia’s most successful and prominent ­arts organisations.

Aboriginal art collectors should know exactly what they are getting

In an age when respect, integrity and authenticity are at the centre of community expectations, uncomfortable issues have been raised by serious allegations of what is happening in the studios of the APY Art Centre Collective in South Australia.

‘We won’t brush scandal under carpet’

The government minister driving an investigation into allegations of white interference in black artwork suspects some in the arts establishment ‘want us to brush it under the carpet’ but she has vowed to get to the truth.

Stretch to believe report has drawn a line under it

It is hard to feel that the NGA report has done much to allay the suspicions that hang over the APY Art Centre Collective paintings, let alone the management of the APYACC.

‘White hands’ centre given exhibition ban by Top End gallery

The Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory’s director Adam Worrall will not work with the APY Art Centre Collective following its expulsion from the Indigenous Art Code.

APY group expelled from Indigenous Art Code

It comes after a months-long investigation by The Australian revealed claims by APYACC studio staff and artists that white staff painted substantial sections of Indigenous paintings.

‘White hands concerns are valid’

NT Arts Minister has written to Tony Burke to push the ‘valid and numerous’ concerns Indigenous art industry leaders have about a SA-led probe into the APY Art Centre Collective.

On Friday, there was relief and joy from the whistleblower artists and art centre workers, and from the wider industry, that something was finally being done.

An Indigenous artist who said she felt ashamed when Ms O’Meara and other white studio staffers painted on her artwork said: “The way that artists were treated was bad, really bad … Skye and the other management, they’ve got to go.”

She added she was very pleased with the panel’s decision to refer matters to ORIC and the ACCC.

“In my heart I feel pukulpa,” she said. “That means my heart is very happy. I was nervous that the panel was taking so long but now, pukulpa.”

One of the nation’s leading ­Indigenous arts academics Brenda Croft said the referral must wake up an arts community “in denial” over the allegations.

The two peak bodies representing all the Indigenous arts centres in South Australia and the Central Deserts and their thousands of ­artists – Ku Arts and Desart – both repeated calls for Ms O’Meara to resign.

Philip Watkins, chief executive of Desart, the peak body for the central desert representing 35 Indigenous arts centres, said his organisation welcomed the panel’s referrals for further investigation.

“I reiterate my position that the senior management of the collective should stand aside while these bodies carry out their investigations … I look forward to a speedy resolution of these matters,” Mr Watkins said

A spokeswoman for Ku Arts said it encouraged “the APYACC board to bring about a change in their management.

“Ku Arts remain deeply concerned regarding the serious nature of the issues being investigated and continue to offer our support to the artists who have bravely spoken out,” she said.

One former gallery staffer said she had lost work in the arts sector because it was suspected that she had spoken to The Australian. “It’s really promising,” she said of the minister’s referrals. “It’s definitely a step in the right direction.”

She said it was untenable that Ms O’Meara remain general manager of the APYACC.

A former manager of an arts centre in the APY lands, who claimed she was bullied by Ms O’Meara, said it was wonderful that “someone finally listened, after decades of bad behaviour and abuse”.

“There’s no way that minister would be recommending these matters go further if there was a ‘nothing to see here’ situation,” the former manager said.

Another prominent APY ­community member said Ms O’Meara had been an extremely divisive ­figure in the community and there were now great splits between families.

“Anangu have one superpower and that is to come together after conflict – Skye needs to go, that’s a given – and the community needs to find a way to come together because everyone is hurting and everyone is related,” the community member said.

Ms Michaels, who had previously allocated taxpayer funding to the APYACC, joined several ­Indigenous arts leaders in calling again for Ms O’Meara to resign.

In July the panel – consisting of lawyer Anne Sibree and Indigenous experts Megan Krakouer and Cameron Costello – began investigating the claims made in The Australian.

Their investigation was initiated by Ms Michaels with the backing of her federal and Northern Territory counterparts, Tony Burke and Chansey Paech.

The panel was tasked with probing the APYACC, and ­determining if matters should be subject to investigation or regulatory action by another body with regards to:

• allegations, both current and historical, that APYACC staff had intervened in the artwork of Indigenous artists.

• claims that efforts had been made by APYACC staff to conceal interventions in the artwork of Indigenous artists working in or for the APYACC.

• allegations that APYACC did not support a culturally safe, respectful and/or appropriate workplace for artists.

The Weekend Australian understands the panel also found evidence relating to the authenticity of documents it submitted to the commonwealth and South Australian governments while seeking taxpayer funds, and its compliance with its business plan. It also collated evidence regarding the art body’s payment and compensation arrangements with artists.

The referrals are a major embarrassment for the National Gallery of Australia and the Art Gallery of South Australia, which have both been big supporters of the APYACC and Ms O’Meara. The AGSA has purchased scores of paintings from the APYACC.

The publishing of the allegations led to the postponement of the NGA’s major winter show, Ngura Pulka, a collection of APYACC paintings, which was supposed to open in May.

The NGA’s review in August was widely panned by grassroots Indigenous artists after its panel cleared the APYACC’s white staff of interfering in 28 Indigenous paintings it was due to exhibit in Canberra, despite failing to interview a key whistleblower.

The NGA did not respond to requests for comment on the tri-government panel’s findings.

The decision to stand down Ms O’Meara could be taken out of the hands of the APYACC board as ORIC has the power to disband the board and appoint an administrator. Ms Michaels said that while she would not be making any specific recommendations to ORIC, “(appointing an administrator) is a power they have and they will probably look into that”.

“(The panel) has gathered evidence and the evidence they have gathered is sufficient for them to refer matters to someone who does have those investigative powers,” Ms Michaels said.

“(The panel) couldn’t compel witnesses, they couldn’t offer whistleblower protection … but they found sufficient information to warrant them referring matters to these regulatory bodies.”

In February, when The Australian first sent questions to Ms O’Meara regarding the allegations that had been raised, a reply came not from Ms O’Meara, but from the AGSA deputy director Lisa Slade, saying: “I have never seen or heard anything of this (white hands on black art) in the 13 years that I have worked closely with Anangu.” Dr Slade said.

“The ramifications of these types of actions can only make people’s lives harder than they already are. Communities need good stories about their artists and their art centres, celebrating the positive impacts that they have within community.”