First Nations Poets, Writers and Creatives Come Together for OUR WORDS

This weekend OUR WORDS takes over Adelaide Festival Centre’s Artspace, bringing First Nations poets, writers, creatives and thought leaders together for a series of free live panels to contemplate, provoke and inspire.

Taking place across two days from Friday 31 July to Saturday 1 August, OUR WORDS commences Friday evening with award-winning Narungga and Kaurna Nations cultural leader, theatre maker and choreographer Jacob Boehme joining Adelaide Festival Centre’s First Nations Programming Executive and OUR WORDS curator Celia Coulthard in conversation to unpack how we bring family lore to the stage with integrity and nuance in The Stories We Tell.

More in-depth and insightful conversations take place on Saturday 1 August, beginning at 10am with Art for Thought. This chat features Flinders University’s Associate Professor in Critical Indigenous Studies, Ali Gumillya Baker, sitting down with Blue Art Journal editor Timmah Ball and contributors Dominic Guerrera and James Tylor to celebrate the landmark First Nations visual arts publication and how we view art shaped by Indigenous voice and creativity.

Next up at 11:30am is Mother Tongue, a panel consisting of multidisciplinary artist Sonya Rankine, contemporary artist and designer Susie Betts, poet Jayda Wilson, language and culture preservation advocate Ema Bovoro, and Karina Lester from Adelaide University’s Mobile Language Team, discussing how languages have been woven into Country since the first sunrise.

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Food and wine entrepreneur Pauly Vandenbergh (Tjindu Foundation, Munda Wines and Wonna Mar) leads a conversation with teacher, artist and co-founder of native food company Warndu, Damien Coulthard, and Nornie Bero (a chef of 30 years with two cookbooks and an SBS series Island Echoes), at 1:30pm to talk growing, cooking and eating in Fed by Country.

The day finishes up on a lighthearted note with Matters of the Heart at 3:00pm, featuring award-winning and deadly funny writers Skye Cusack, Beau Windon (Melbourne Prize for Literature 2024 finalist) and Yvonne Weldon (author and first Aboriginal councillor in the City of Sydney's history) and Courtney Jaye to talk Blak love, joy and romance.

Adelaide Festival Centre First Nations Programming Executive Celia Coulthard: “The best way to experience OUR WORDS is to immerse yourself, starting with Friday night, then settle in for the full Saturday line-up. From language to food to Blak love, with a break between each to grab a bite and a drink at Riverbank Café and check out our BIGGEST MOB exhibitions. This is First Nations storytelling at its best: honest, funny, moving, and made to be shared.”

 OUR WORDS takes place at Adelaide Festival Centre's Artspace from Friday 31 July to Saturday 1 August. More information is available here.