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“As the water flows through the canals of Venice to the lagoon, then to the Adriatic Sea, it then travels to the oceans and to the rest of the world – enveloping the continent of Australia – connecting us all here on Earth,” Moore said in accepting the prestigious award overnight in Venice.
“Aboriginal kinship systems include all living things from the environment in a larger network of interrelatedness. The land itself can be a mentor or a parent or a child. We are all one and share a responsibility of care to all living things now and into the future.
The artwork includes hundreds of stacks of documents suspended over a reflection pool.Credit: Andrea Rossetti
“I’m very grateful for this accolade: it makes me feel honoured to be rewarded for the hard work one does. I’m grateful to everyone who has always been part of my journey from my kith to my kin to my Creative Australia team and everyone else back home and those of the Venice Lagoon.”
Moore’s reimagined genealogical chart, sprawling over 60 metres, was intensively researched for the biennale.
A reflection pool has been built in the pavilion’s centre, over which more than 500 document stacks have been suspended.
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These contain mainly the findings of coronial inquests into the deaths of Indigenous Australians in police custody dated in Moore’s lifetime.
Arts Minister Tony Burke congratulated the artist on his “well-deserved recognition” and said it justified the building of Australia’s new pavilion in 2013 to mark the country’s cultural ambitions.
“Archie’s work kith and kin shows the power of Australian art and storytelling going right back to the first sunrise,” Burke said.
“Australian stories help us understand ourselves, know more about each other, and let the world get to know us. That’s exactly what this artwork does.”
The biennale opened as the Israeli artist Ruth Patir and curators of the Israeli pavilion kept their doors shut, saying they would only open their exhibition when a ceasefire and hostage release agreement had been reached.
Moore’s origin story, commissioned by Creative Australia and curated by Ellie Buttrose, contrasts strongly with Australia’s 2022 entry by Melbourne musician and noise-making artist Marco Fusinato, who performed live daily with stacked amps, discordant guitar riffs and a large LED screen.
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