Next Wave Festival (a world of creative discovery).

Katie West (WA)

How can we undo the damage done by colonialism? What could it mean for us as individuals? Through reflecting on the impact of colonisation upon her sense of self as an Aboriginal woman, Katie West has developed her own method of decolonisation. Decolonist is a space to experience West’s personal meditation practice, where breathing out the traumas of colonisation and breathing in a decolonised state of mind can give life to philosophy and action that might dominate a new decolonised Australian reality. The familiar imagery of Australian national identity becomes infused with native plants sourced from the urban environment: sewn, woven and bound together, creating an intricate and fragile context that audiences are invited to explore. Within this shifting ephemeral display, audiences are invited to be still, to listen, to confront sources of trauma and to inspire healing. A meditation on the land we occupy as Australians—and the nation that inhabits our minds—Decolonist lays a path towards encountering your decolonised identity.

Katie West is of Yindjibarndi descent and lives on Noongar Whadjuk country.