At the exhibition opening, Aboriginal activist Robbie Thorpe gave a speech addressing those seeking asylum in Australia. To reaffirm Indigenous sovereignty and offer welcome, Thorpe held up an Indigenous colour-themed Aboriginal Passport to Country. What is perhaps most remarkable about the exhibition is the sense of cultural continuity that has developed between the artists through their collaborative works.

Five years have passed since an Aboriginal voice was at the centre of exhibitions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art and ceremonial practice at the NGV, when Yamatji curator Stephen Gilchrist worked at the gallery (2005-10). He recently wrote about the potential strength of an art institution when Indigenous perspectives inform the way it operates, going beyond ‘us vs them’ scenarios to create ‘culturally resonant’ spaces that can attract and interest multiethnic Australian audiences.