Image: Lilla Berry, STRONG WMN.
September 27 - October 29, 2021
Artist Talk: October 15, 5:30-6:30pm
Where: The Mill Exhibition Space, 154 Angas St, Kaurna Yarta
Cost: $10 with a drink on arrival
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Disability access is available via our Angas St entrance, and a disability toilet is also available. View our accessibility information page.
The Mill welcomes Yankunytjatjara woman, multi-disciplinary artist Lilla Berry as our second Collaboration & Mentorship artist in resident (CaM-Res), supported by City of Adelaide. Lilla has created this work through development time in The Mill’s Breakout space, mentorship with The Mill’s artistic team and the opportunity to collaborate with photographer Morgan Sette. Lilla’s exhibition celebrates her relationships with her community, through practicing dance, footy, weaving and the act of coming together. She has also collaborated with strong women, including Pearl Berry, Iteka Ukarla, Carly Tarkari Dodd, Mali Isabel, Amber Ahang and Kirsty Williams.
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The arts have always been embedded into my life. My family is made up of musicians and visual artists, and practicing art was something I just did when I was younger. Although using my body seemed to be one of the things I enjoyed most, whether that was dancing or acrobatics. As I got older and more influenced by others around me, the inherent idea that I was an artist shifted and changed. My practice moved towards a dance focus, as this was what I had the greatest opportunity to practice. However, as I’ve continued to develop as an arts worker, I’ve been able to tap into the other areas of my practice and continue to develop my skills across a range of mediums, and now have the confidence to articulate myself as a multi-disciplinary artist. Even if each discipline doesn’t get the same amount of my attention, they are equally as important and rewarding for me to practice.
I’m extremely excited for the opportunity to give these mediums more attention through my residency and exhibition. I will be working through painting, weaving, video and photography, as well movement, to explore the themes of the exhibition. My development as a curator will also be explored, as I not only curate my own works, but also those of other artists I will collaborate with.
STRNG WMN. will explore what it means to be strong Aboriginal women. Including culturally, physically and mentally. I have always been surrounded by strong women growing up. I was raised by a single mother, and as an athlete all of my team mates were strong women, being strong role models. And growing up watching other young Aboriginal woman dancing with Kurruru, I was so inspired by their strength in culture.
Through the facilitation of women’s circles, I will take the lived experiences of other women to inform movement to be captured on film, still images and installation. I want to capture the authentic voices of our community, and explore all the ways we as women find strength, as it comes in all different types of forms.
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Lilla Berry is a Yankunytjatjara woman, multi-disciplinary artist, arts worker and producer. Lilla began her arts career at Carclew in 2014, and completed a secondment part time role with Country Arts South Australia as the Aboriginal Programs Associate Producer in 2018, and has contributed to a wide range of exciting programming.
In 2017, Lilla formed the Aboriginal cultural contemporary dance company Of Desert and Sea, alongside her fellow dance ensemble members. Of Desert and Sea explores themes relevant to the 5 Aboriginal women who make up the company. They have had
performances and workshops at places such WOMADelaide, Art Gallery of South Australia, Dance Rites at the Sydney Opera House, and their debut show Beautiful, presented in Tarnanthi, November 2019. Beautiful’s second season at Adelaide Fringe 2020 also received the Emerging Artist Award. In 2019 she received her first screen credit, producing Sansbury Sisters as part of the Deadly Family Portraits Initiative with South Australian Film Corp and ABC iView.
Lilla’s practice as an artist is multi-disciplinary, as she explores mediums including dance, weaving, painting, video and photography. Her artworks are representation of her own lived experiences, and those of her community.
Yankunytjatjara woman, multi-disciplinary artist Lilla Berry
This exhibition has support from
