kiliwuna - 2021

Vicki West

Vicki West is a Tasmanian Aboriginal artist of the Trawlwoolway people from the North East coast region. West has maintained a strong local, national and more recently international exhibition record over the past decade, and is represented in the collections of major institutions including the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra; the Art Gallery of NSW, Sydney; the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin; the Australian National Maritime Museum, Sydney, NSW; the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery, Launceston, TAS; and the Australian National Museum, Canberra amongst others. West’s arts practice includes large scale installations incorporating multiple elements, smaller scale sculptural works, jewelry, textiles, painting and new media.  She draws on traditional Tasmanian Aboriginal cultural practices and materials to create contemporary artworks that explore and celebrate cultural survival in the face of continuing colonial myths of the extinction of her people. In her own words,  "we are still here".