Izzy Craven can’t always understand her Filipino grandmother.
Key points:
- Izzy Craven won the Audience Choice Award at this year’s Exit Art Exhibition in Darwin
- The exhibition includes works of art by 12th graders from across the Northern Territory
- Visitors can see the pieces in the Northern Territory Museum and Art Gallery
But when Darwin’s young artist presented his award-winning self-portrait, no language was needed.
“She was very excited when she saw it, because she still has the scarf I painted on,” she said.
“She said something in Filipino that I can’t really understand, but she was very happy.”
Navigating cultural identity was a central theme in Izzy’s self-portrait, earning her the People’s Award at a prestigious art exhibition for 12-year-old students at Darwin.
“Your Best Australian Girl” faces the feeling of being an outsider in your home country. (ABC News: Hamish Harty)
Now in its 30th year, the Northern Territory Museum’s Exit Art and Art Gallery (MAGNT) annual exhibition showcases the talent of promising students from across the territory.
Titled “Your Best Australian Girl,” Izzy’s self-portrait features a scarf made by her Filipino grandmother, a traditional Korean hat from her mother, and an assortment of Asian and Western food products.
“I think this year’s concept was about my identity and my culture. And then thinking about my culture, I’m so disconnected from it,” she said.
“Like, I don’t know that language at all. I’m Korean and Filipino, and I didn’t know that language or anything about it. And the only thing that connected me was the food.”
The award-winning piece by Izzy and others is shown at MAGNT in Darwin. (ABC News: Hamish Harty)
Izzy said the piece was also inspired by a song titled ‘Your Best American Girl’ by Japanese-American artist Mitski, which explores the concept of feeling like a foreigner in your own country.
According to exhibition coordinator Kellie Joswig, this balancing act between honoring family history and participating in mainstream Australian culture touched the ropes between young artists and the Top End audience.
“I think there are pretty coherent issues that come up, concerns about one’s own identity, cultural identity,” he said.
Joswig says the annual art exhibition offers a valuable window into the minds of young artists in the territory. (ABC News: Hamish Harty)
For other young artists, climate change was a hot topic.
“Some artists are really passionate about the environment and try to express those ideas through their artwork through the sustainability, landscape and sustainability of housing,” he said.
Culture was a major theme at this year’s Exit Art exhibition. (ABC News: Hamish Harty)
Professor Sarah Taylor said her students held the Exit Art exhibition in high esteem.
“I brought my two art classes from year 12 and literally, after seeing work in this space, they don’t care about their grades, they care about going into Exit Art,” he said.
12-year-old students work hard to show off their work. (ABC News: Hamish Harty)
“It’s like the final game for them. And seeing their work on display in this setting, then it seems like we’re not just painting and cutting out pieces of paper.
“There’s substance and it’s going somewhere. It’s not just about doing something beautiful, obviously.”
Powerful portraits that appear among works of art. (ABC News: Hamish Harty)