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Art that drives social change

From celebrating queer communities and creating safe spaces to championing authentic First Nations voices, how will art make us see things differently?

9 Dec 2022

Celina Lei

A photograph of Suzy Wrong standing very tall wearing an enormous colourful dress that is made out of national flags stitched together. The dress looks as though it is rippling in the wind. In the background is the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House.

Performing Arts

Trans woman Suzy Wrong wearing the Amsterdam Rainbow Dress of flags from 71 countries were it is still illegal to be LGBTQI+ ahead of Sydney WorldPride 2023. Photo: Cassandra Hannagan.

Increasingly, we are seeing the power art has to shape dialogue, increase visibility, and highlight the most important topics of our times. Art plays an important role in advocacy and protest, but is also an avenue to celebrate marginalised communities and send out the message that ‘we are here, and we see you’.

In 2023, Sydney will become a playground for artists, creatives, communities and allies to exemplify the power of art with everything from a ’party with purpose’ to staging First Nations languages.

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Celina Lei

Celina Lei is an arts writer and editor at ArtsHub. She acquired her M.A in Art, Law and Business in New York with a B.A. in Art History and Philosophy from the University of Melbourne. She has previously worked across global art hubs in Beijing, Hong Kong and New York in both the commercial art sector and art criticism. She took part in drafting NAVA’s revised Code of Practice - Art Fairs and was the project manager of ArtsHub’s diverse writers initiative, Amplify Collective. Celina is based in Naarm/Melbourne.