Do you see art and design as different disciplines, or do you feel they overlap?

I see art and design as both being shaped by cultural and historical contexts and when converged, both create a dynamic synergy where aesthetic expression and functional innovation are integrated and evolved.

This year marks Cassandra Bird’s first show at Sydney Contemporary Art Fair. Which artists and works are you presenting, and what factors influenced your curation for this event?

We are presenting a solo booth with works by the groundbreaking Tennant Creek Brio, who are an artist collective living and working on Warumungu Country. Their artwork fuses together First Nations cultural traditions, the industrial materiality of the mining industry, and regional and global contemporary art practice. Our booth features artworks that have been painted on salvaged found materials such as oil barrels, car bonnets, barrel lids, television screens, and geological maps from the abandoned Warrego mine together with vibrant and exciting collaborative paintings. Our presentation will be ahead of their major solo presentation at ACCA opening September 20.

Can you tell us about some of the influences that have shaped the artistic practice of The Tennant Creek Brio?

The Tennant Creek Brio first came together in 2016, when the artists launched an outreach initiative at the Anyinginyi Health Aboriginal Corporation, a local men’s centre. Their creative endeavours are deeply rooted in their Tennant Creek environment, often utilising mine planning papers salvaged from old mines as canvases. The Brio’s artworks blend Aboriginal ceremonial motifs with elements of popular culture, reflecting the profound and intricate intergenerational influences that shape their lives, identities, and visions for the future.