Contemporary Indigenous artists in Australia have been utilizing their art to incorporate traditional practices and narratives in order to challenge and redefine postcolonial identity within the global art market. Here are some key ways they are doing this:

1. Preserving and Adapting Traditional Mediums and Techniques:
   • Many Indigenous artists continue to use traditional materials and techniques, such as ochre paints, weaving, and carving, as a way to maintain connections to their cultural heritage.
   • However, they often adapt these traditional forms to contemporary art practices, creating new hybrid styles that blend the old and the new.
   • This allows them to honor their ancestral knowledge while also responding to the modern art world.
2. Centering Indigenous Stories and Worldviews:
   • Indigenous artists use their art to share narratives, myths, and perspectives that have been marginalized or erased by colonial histories.
   • They depict cultural practices, creation stories, and connections to land and community, asserting the validity and importance of Indigenous ways of knowing.
   • This challenges the Western-centric art canon and demands recognition of Indigenous epistemologies.
3. Reclaiming and Reinterpreting Symbols and Imagery:
   • Artists appropriate and reinterpret traditional symbols, motifs, and iconography that have been appropriated or misused by the colonial culture.
   • By reclaiming these visual elements, they assert Indigenous sovereignty and self-determination over their cultural heritage.
   • This decolonial practice disrupts the Western gaze and reimagines these symbols within their original cultural contexts.
4. Engaging with Themes of Displacement, Resilience, and Activism:
   • Many Indigenous artists address the ongoing impacts of colonization, including land dispossession, cultural suppression, and social marginalization.
   • Their works explore themes of displacement, trauma, and the fight for Indigenous rights and recognition.
   • By centering these political and social issues, they use their art as a form of activism and resistance against the legacy of colonialism.
5. Navigating the Global Art Market:
   • Indigenous artists must carefully navigate the global art market, which has historically been dominated by Western institutions and perspectives.
   • They find ways to assert their artistic autonomy and cultural sovereignty while engaging with international audiences and collectors.
   • This may involve collaborating with Indigenous-led art centers, curating their own exhibitions, or selectively participating in mainstream art events.