Tandanya National Aboriginal Cultural Institute facts for kids

Tandanya National Aboriginal Cultural Institute, often called Tandanya, is a special art museum in Adelaide, South Australia. It's all about showing and celebrating Indigenous Australian art, including paintings, music, and traditional stories. It's super important because it's the oldest cultural center in Australia that is owned and run by Aboriginal Australians.

What Does "Tandanya" Mean?

The name Tandanya comes from the word Tarndanya. This is what the Kaurna Aboriginal people called the area where Adelaide city centre and its parklands are today. It means "place of the red kangaroo".

A Look at Tandanya's History

Tandanya is a very special place because it was the first cultural center in Australia to be owned and run by Aboriginal people. It first opened its doors in 1989. The very first art show at Tandanya was called Utopia — A Picture Story. It featured beautiful artworks on silk made by women from a place called Utopia in the Northern Territory.

The Building's Story

Tandanya is located in an old building that used to be the Grenfell Street Power Station. This power station was built way back in 1901! Later, it was changed and rebuilt in 1912–13. The front of the building has a special design called Palladian-style. This historic building was officially recognized as a heritage site in 1984.

What Tandanya Does

Tandanya has many important jobs. It helps people learn about and enjoy Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures. Here are some of the things they do:

• They put on amazing art exhibitions to show off visual art.
• They host performances like music, dance, and theatre shows.
• They create public art projects with the community.
• They offer cultural performances and information for everyone.
• They have school programs to teach students about Indigenous cultures.
• They lead cultural and artistic tours.
• They have a café with Indigenous-inspired food.
• Their Gallery Shop sells real Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artworks.

Tandanya is run by a group of 10 people who are all of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander background and live in South Australia. They have a leader called a Chief executive officer (CEO) who manages the daily activities.

As of 2021, the CEO is Dennis Stokes. He comes from the Wardaman, Luritja, and Warramunga peoples of the Northern Territory, and also the Wagadagam people from the Torres Strait Islands. Tandanya gets its money from the Australia Council for the Arts.

Recent Activities at Tandanya

Tandanya is always busy with exciting events!

They often run special programs and performances during NAIDOC Week. This is a time when people across Australia celebrate the history, culture, and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Since 2015, Tandanya has been a big part of the annual Art Fair. This fair is part of the Tarnanthi Festival. Tarnanthi is a festival that celebrates modern Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art every year.

Tandanya in 2020

In 2020, Tandanya was supposed to celebrate its 30th birthday. But like many places, it had to close for over six months because of the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia. When it reopened in October, they had a special art show called Atnwengerrp — Our Apmere, Our Place. This exhibition was extra special because it included art from five of the same women whose work was shown in Tandanya's very first exhibition 30 years before!

On November 13, 2020, during NAIDOC Week, Tandanya hosted a new music festival called TREATY. This festival featured talented First Nations musicians from South Australia. Some of the performers included J-Milla, Sonz of Serpent, Dem Mob, RKM, Tilly Tjala Thomas, MRLN, and Katie Aspel.

There are also talks happening about a new Aboriginal Art and Cultures Centre (AACC) being built in Adelaide. It's planned to open in 2025.

See also

• List of music museums
• Tarndanyangga