Page 35 - Tropic Magazine Issue 25

TROPIC • COVER STORY
CIAF 2020
FASHION
SHOWCASE

Swapping catwalk for Country and
taking cue from this year’s theme,
Water is Sacred, Cairns Indigenous
Art Fair will utilise an innovative,
virtual platform to deliver a
culturally charged fashion event to
the world.
For this year’s eighth, but first
ever, digital iteration of CIAF’s
signature event, choreographer
Hans Ahwang is joined by creative

duo, Bernard Singleton and Simone
Arnol to produce and showcase
seven designer collections filmed
and photographed in Tropical North
Queensland’s most picturesque,
water-based locations from
Wangetti Beach and Green Island to
Tinaroo Dam, Davies Creek Falls and
Cairns Aquarium.
A creative cohort of 12 models,
hair and make-up artists and
crew converged at The Tanks Arts
Q&A Centre this week for rehearsals
Pormpuraaw Art and prior to starting an intense, seven
Culture Centre day filming schedule that begins
Fashion performance and visual art exhibitions on Saturday 11 July at Wangetti
Beach and wraps a week later at
What does CIAF mean to you personally and to the broader Freshwater Creek.
community in 2020? Tune in to 2020.ciaf.com.au from
CIAF and all the art centres and people involved are our community. 7pm on Friday 21 August for Water
Every year we all get together and celebrate our art and culture. is Sacred, with viewers set to
Our art and culture are all a bit different but share certain common experience a spectacular and
threads. They all come from country and celebrate our uniqueness. engaging 90-minute production that
celebrates water, commends its
What are the new opportunities you see for the festival and for artists care and sustaining its connection
with the pivot to digital? to Country.
We all miss our grand event art fair and celebration together. We will This year’s presenting fashion
make the digital fun. We must accept our shared circumstances. We designers include Lynelle Flinders,
might as well all work together; in the future and the here and now.
Coronavirus is not going to disappear. Digital events will become more Bana – Yirriji (Wujal Wujal), Eunice
common. Hosea, Nicole Chatfield, Simone
Arnol & Djunngaal Elders Group,
What are you most looking forward to seeing at this year’s event? Yarrabah, Hope Vale Arts and
I think it will be fascinating to see our work being transferred onto a Culture Centre, Pormpuraaw Art and
totally different format. A format that is infinitely accessible to a huge Culture Centre Inc.
audience for countless years to come. As long as humans exist and
keep the information stream pumping through the digital world, our art 1. CIAF General Manager, Darrell Harris
works will be there to be seen. 2. Arone Meeks, The Gesture
3. Rosie Lowdown, White Dog
35 • tropicnow.com.au