Mukulri Creative

This photo was taken almost 10 years ago. At the time, I was living in a tiny studio apartment in St Kilda with a big dream. One day I decided to take a chance on myself, register my art business, create a social media page, and build a website.

Sometimes all it takes is backing yourself and taking that first step.

You may have heard me talk before about the importance of protecting Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP) and calling out cultural appropriation when we see it. A lot of the time that conversation is about overseas companies creating Aboriginal designs and labelling it as authentic, but it can also happen closer to home when people use a particular art style, story or cultural expression that they don't have a connection to.

would add AI to that list of concerns. You've probably seen AI generated Aboriginal art appearing across social media, particularly in the dot painting style. Much of it is generic and lacks any real cultural meaning, but what's becoming more and more worrying is how difficult it can be to tell the difference between artwork created by an Aboriginal artist and artwork generated by a machine. Whether we like it or not, AI is here and it's something we will need to navigate with caution, ensuring that Aboriginal artists, communities and cultural knowledge are respected and protected.

How should AI companies engage with Aboriginal artists and communities when developing these types of platforms?