Synopsis

In Art + Soul, a major three-part ABC TV series, curator Hettie Perkins takes us on a journey through the art forms and movements of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

From ancient rock paintings to Western Desert art and watercolours of the mid 20th-century, and contemporary multimedia artists of today, Art + Soul reveals the breadth of expression and enduring heritage of Aboriginal art, its diversity and complexity.

The DVD presents an "insider's" view of contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art and artists. Charismatic curator Hetti Perkins takes us on a journey of ideas and the imagination--revealing the diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander life and culture.

Episode 1 - Home And Away

What does it mean to be 'at home' for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people? Is it where you live, or the 'country' you are exiled from?

Episode 2 - Dreams And Nightmares

From the 'dreaming' to the unsettling nightmare of colonisation, what is the role of memory, dreams and the spirit world in Aboriginal art?

Episode 3 - Bitter And Sweet

How does the startling beauty - and humour - of Aboriginal art intertwine with reverberations of the past and our present?

Art for me is a way for our people to share stories and allow a wider community to understand our history and us as a people.

— Hetti Perkins