Venice Biennale of Architecture 2020

In 2019, the Australian Institute of Architects chose to work with us create an identity for the Australian pavilion at the 2020 Venice Biennale of Architecture.

We worked with architects Tristan Wong and Jefa Greenway – a First Nations architect – to shape a biennale response that strengthened cultural connections and understanding between non-indigenous and First Nations peoples.

Recognising a need for co-creation, we engaged artist and designer Maree Clarke, a Yorta Yorta / Wamba Wamba / Mutti Mutti / Boonwurrung woman.

Her work is represented in art institutions around the country, including the National Gallery of Australia – whose collection of Maree's work is the largest of a single artist's creative output.

Process, not perfection

When we started working with Maree, we didn't know exactly where this journey would take us. However, we trusted the process and took the time to immerse ourselves in Maree's creative practice and storytelling knowledge. Much of her oeuvre focuses on reclaiming and reviving Indigenous traditions and culture that colonisation has impeded or disrupted.

We were drawn to her work making traditional cloaks from possum skins. This tradition is practised by First Nations peoples in Australia's south-east, where Round is based. From a young age, the cloaks are sewn patchwork style.

Over time, new parts are added. These sections are marked with symbols that tell stories of places, communities, and spiritual beliefs. As the cloaks grow and change, the context and content of the stories they tell also evolve.

As creative storytellers, this tradition of mark-making and graphic expressionresonated with us. Together with Maree, we turned our attention to four symbols which we: 'mother', 'father', 'snake' (the serpent from Dreaming Stories who gave shape to earth), and 'people' – which speaks to the collective.

Knowing our output would live primarily digitally, we focussed on these marks and how we could bring them to a new medium in which they could be accessed and shared.

Finding a shared language

At the same time, our other collaborators – Tristan and Jefa – were working on a map that captured the breadth of dialects of Indigenous languages spoken across Australia. Before colonisation, over 250 Indigenous languages and 800 dialects were spoken in this country.

We loved the thinking behind this project and found the breadth and diversity of language – the foundational elements of the stories that shape our shared experiences – to be thematically and creatively resonant with our approach to Maree's work.

Unifying these threads, we took this lingual map and used it as a textural application on Maree's narrative marks.

Combined, they speak to the collective power of narrative – the strength of a choir compared with the fragile beauty of a soloist.

A road travelled together

Generally, case studies – including many of our own – focus primarily on the project's outcomes.

While we're proud of the creative applications, we really want to celebrate the process of collaboration that informed and shaped the work.

Co-creation energises us, especially if we don't know where it will take us. The ground we covered here is a microcosm of what we're striving to achieve broadly. We strive to listen deeply, speak clearly and walk alongside our partners.

Together, we travel further than we ever could alone.