Two contemporary Noongar artists have been commissioned to create artworks for the State Government's Perth Aboriginal Short Stay Accommodation (Perth Short Stay) project – Ilona McGuire and Zali Morgan. They will be designing artworks within the community building and to the accommodation units, to create an environment that celebrates Aboriginal art and culture.
Ilona McGuire is a Bibbulmun Noongar and Kungarakan interdisciplinary artist whose light shows have featured at two Fremantle Biennale festivals – Moombaki (2021) and Kooranup (2023). She was awarded a Schenberg Art Fellowship for Hatched at the Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts in 2021, and her works have been exhibited across the country, including at The National 4: Australian Art Now exhibition in Sydney.
Ilona centralises the Indigenous experience in her art and will be designing the Perth Short Stay’s foyer artwork.
Zali Morgan is a Whadjuk Balladong and Wilman Noongar artist and former guest curator for the 2023 NAIDOC Exhibition at the Art Gallery of Western Australia. Through her printmaking, Zali looks at iconic buildings and spaces within Boorloo and the Noongar region and attempts to expose the history and significance of the sites for Noongar people. Zali Morgan has also exhibited nationally and received the City of South Perth’s Emerging Artist Open Award for her image of the old Swan Brewery in 2023.
Zali will complement Ms McGuire’s works by crafting an interpretation map within the foyer, as well as adding unique artworks directly onto the window within the rooms and on the front entry screen.
The Perth Short Stay is expected to open in 2027 and will provide accommodation for Aboriginal people from across Western Australia who travel to Perth to access a range of essential services, or who are visiting for business, cultural or family reasons.
Located in Cannington, the Perth Short Stay will be Western Australia's fifth bespoke development providing safe, culturally appropriate, and affordable short-term accommodation.
For more information on the project, visit: Perth Aboriginal Short Stay Accommodation.
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