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‘I, Object’
Aug 2019 - Aug 2021

An installation view of a wood sculpture of a dog / Camp dog (Ku)

‘I, Object’ looks at the many complex relationships Indigenous Australian artists have to objects: from the histories informing their creation, to the social and cultural consequences of their collection.

Many traditional Indigenous objects exhibit powerful aesthetic dimensions. For some Indigenous people, cultural productions are more than art objects; rather, they are considered part of ancestral history, and are integral to Indigenous identity. QAGOMA recognises itself as a site where Indigenous Australians can gain greater agency over how their culture, identity and artistic achievements are presented, and that such Indigenous cultural material belongs to ongoing cultural traditions.

‘I, Object’ was on display at GOMA from 3 August 2019 to 29 August 2021, and tours regionally from 5 Aug 2023 to 30 Mar 2025.


Cultural sensitivity warning 
QAGOMA would like to respectfully advise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander viewers that this resource contains images and references to the deceased, references to massacres and mentions of derogatory language.




Feature image: Garry Namponan / Wik-Alkan/Wik-Ngatharr people / Australia b.1960 / Ku' (Camp dog) 2010 / Purchased 2010 with funds from the Josephine Ulrick and Win Schubert Diversity Foundation through the Queensland Art Gallery Foundation / © Garry Namponan / Photograph: J Ruckli, QAGOMA

Collection artworks featured in ‘I, Object’

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A photograph of QAGOMA's Collection of ku' (camp dog) sculptures
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