when you have knowledge you have obligation,
when you have a voice you have freedom,
you have pride and you belong.
‘We thought we would use the vernacular of young people – the way they write on Instagram and social media, and adjust and play with that language … they know their own ways of making it [culture] really relevant in their everyday,’ Roberts said. She said this year’s theme is about inclusive two-way, side-by-side exchange. ‘That is the key – when we are in it together,’ Roberts added. Parrtjima aims to give young and emerging artists a new agency, working side by side with cultural guides, while senior artists and performers pass on their wisdom to the next generation in new ways and forms. The program includes art, music, performance, talks and workshops, taking a holistic approach. Roberts said: ‘A lot of people think that when you talk about emerging artists across the Australian cultural realm, you are looking at 25-year-olds, but First Nations people might be in their 40s when they start, because of the complexity of the legacy of that particular story they are painting can be passed on, for example.’ A unique aspect of the festival is the Parrtjima Festival Reference Group (PFRG), which underpins the program. ‘When we do the program, and I put those first creative concepts down, it is not just our team and AGB Events, but the community,’ explained Roberts of the Aboriginal-led event. ‘We have developed a layering [model], a bit like a cake. You have the icing; you have the enabling or the recipe, and we bring them the ingredients. After all these years of working in the arts, we have discovered a really great model for an arts festival,’ said Roberts. AN IMPORTANT ANNIVERSARY FOR DOT PAINTING This year it’s 50 years since the Western Desert Art Movement emerged, thanks to school teacher Geoffrey Bardon, who introduced western art materials to community. ‘People see dot painting, of course, as part of the Central Desert – it’s known all around the world. But to stand on the desert floor – on the sand where the original stories and ceremonies were told – will be an amazing moment this year,’ said Roberts. She continued: ‘When people look at these artworks on canvas they see them as a modern thing, but standing on the Country these incredible artworks have a living history. And now, 50 years on after those first canvases, we can take in the same dreaming stories, put into an installation with technology and light. We walk in their footprints.’ Roberts said that while the look and feel of these stories might have changed, the story has not. ‘It goes back to our theme Future Kultcha, and using the language of the day,’ she said. WHY MAKE THE JOURNEY TO ALICE? Roberts says 2021 is a great year for domestic tourism. ‘You’re still going to feel the heat of Bali, but rather than the hot swimming pools, you can visit the cool ancient waterholes of the Centre. ‘This is one of the most ancient deserts in the world, and the newest technology of expression – that is a pilgrimage in itself!’ she added. ‘With Parrtjima you are getting a little slice of all the variants that make up [Aboriginal] culture. It just keeps getting better each year,’ Roberts concluded. Parrtjima: A Festival in Light will be presented 9 – 18 April 2021 at Alice Springs Desert Park, incorporating the MacDonnell Ranges, and Todd Mall in Mparntwe (Alice Springs).