Trained UK artist Anna Dakin talks working in the ‘artistic powerhouse’ of Alice Springs

A tour guide who trained in the UK’s most prestigious art school is now operating out of the Territory’s ‘artistic powerhouse’ – and they’ve got big plans. Find out more.

Anna Dakin. Picture: Shaana McNaught

An artist who trained in the UK’s most prestigious art school is now working in the Territory’s “artistic powerhouse”, and is offering punters a new way to see – and paint – the Red Centre.

UK expat Anna Dakin runs Art Tours of Australia from Alice Springs, and is running a new tour which “is about connecting people with the depth of creativity in this town”.

“From contemporary Indigenous art to experimental local works. It’s an opportunity to see the region’s artistic richness up close,” she said.

Born in the UK, Ms Dakin has spent the last seven years living in Alice Springs, where she worked as a tour guide before starting her art tour business.

Anna Dakin is a UK artist now based in Alice Springs, where she runs her own art tours and is set to expand her business in 2025. Picture: Supplied

In 2022 she was crowned the Territory’s top tour guide, and in 2023 started her tour business.

Before coming to the Red Centre, Ms Dakin studied at the Royal College of Art in the UK.

Aside from just being a qualified artist, Ms Dakin also still hones her craft by collaborating with the Tate – one of the most prestigious art institutions in Britain and the world.

“I have come a long way since my first trip to the Red Centre as a wide-eyed 19 year old dressed in sparkly white Doc Martins expecting to have a two day tourist stop off, see Uluru and then leave,” she said.

Anna Dakin (right) leading a tour on the Larapinta Trail. Picture: Shaana McNaught

“I did go back to the UK to finish my studies but the whole time I was focused on getting back to Alice Springs and the Red Centre to lead the life I knew I wanted. Surrounded by art and nature, and with the warm welcome from a community like nothing I had ever experienced before.

“Alice Springs is an artistic powerhouse.”

Ms Dakin is now running a five-day art and culture tour, run in collaboration with Western Arrernte traditional owners.

The tours will take participants on country, where they will learn about Indigenous culture and local songlines.

“To create art in a landscape that holds tens of thousands of years of cultural knowledge is truly transformative,” she said.

“This will be an incredibly special experience.”

Originally published as Trained UK artist Anna Dakin talks working in the ‘artistic powerhouse’ of Alice Springs