top of page
6902-V1-Koorie-Liaison-Leaderboard-728x90.jpg
4435SM SBS Shaun Micallef_FirstNations Telegraph Banner.jpg
Advertising FN Telegraph - 8458 (FN Leadership).png
SOC18_FNT1.png
Advertising - FN Telegraph Banner - 8455 (FN Partnerships Conference).png
Teho Ropeyarn appointed Acting Artistic Director of CIAF

[by Pip Miller]

Teho-Ropeyarn.jpg

Teho Ropeyarn. Image: Ben Searcy, Art Gallery of South Australia.

Cairns Indigenous Art Fair’s (CIAF) Curatorial Associate Teho Ropeyarn has taken up the Acting Artistic Director’s role effective immediately.

 

Mr Ropeyarn is a long-serving member of the CIAF leadership team, a celebrated artist and respected arts worker who has dedicated his career to advancing First Nations artists and communities throughout North Queensland.

 

CIAF CEO Dennis Stokes welcomed Mr Ropeyarn’s appointment following Francoise Lane's resignation after two years at the artistic helm and overseeing the delivery of this year’s 15th-anniversary milestone program. 

 

“Teho is a well-respected member of Australia’s creative arts industry, and being a Cairns, Far North Queensland local, his interim appointment to Artistic Director is a good news story for the community,” said Mr Stokes.

 

Along with Mr Stokes's commencement in June in the organisation’s first CEO role, Mr Ropeyarn's appointment signals an exciting new chapter for CIAF.

 

“Teho is a valued member of our team who brings his deep passion for First Nations art and culture to the forefront of this celebrated platform.

 

“Under his artistic leadership in this interim period, CIAF will continue to build on its reputation for promoting the diverse voices and stories of Queensland’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities,” he said.

 

Born in Mount Isa in 1988 and hailing from Injinoo in the Cape York Peninsula, Mr Ropeyarn holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the College of Fine Arts, University of New South Wales, Sydney.

 

Mr Ropeyarn’s extensive experience includes roles as Gallery Curator at UMI Arts, Curator of Indigenous Australian Art at the Cairns Art Gallery, and most recently, CIAF’s Curatorial Associate.

 

Over his career, Mr Ropeyarn has collaborated with more than 100 artists and produced over 30 exhibitions, including notable projects such as the co-curated Goobalathaldin Dick Roughsey: Stories of this Land exhibition, which was presented at both the Cairns Art Gallery and Queensland Art Gallery, Gallery of Modern Art. He also managed the Big Sculpture exhibition, CIAF’s first major touring project.

 

Mr Ropeyarn’s curatorial expertise has been internationally recognised through numerous prestigious developmental opportunities, including participation in the Getty Paper Project at the Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection and the National Gallery of Australia’s Wesfarmers Indigenous Leadership Program.

 

Mr Ropeyarn’s career as an artist has flourished parallel to his curatorial work, having been showcased in several solo and group exhibitions in national and international settings.

 

It is not surprising that Mr Ropeyarn's artworks, which have been featured in the 23rd Biennale of Sydney (2022), Nuit Blanche in Canada (2022), and the Queen Sonja Print Award in Norway (2022), comprise significant collections, including the National Gallery of Australia, Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art, and South Australia.

 

Mr Ropeyarn commenced his new role as CIAF’s Acting Artistic Director this month, and it will be effective until 31 January 2025.

EREA-logo-PMS-LNDSCPE.jpeg

LATEST NEWS

Marley.jpg

Journey to Justice for Marley Wright-Martin [by Patrick Cook] Marley Wright-Martin was a 27 year old Gunnai, Gunditjmara, Djab Wurrung, Yuin, Monero, Tharawal, and Wadawurrung man who should be alive today.

Natasha-Wanganeen.jpg

SA government allows Riverlea housing project to continue after discovery of Aboriginal remains [Evelyn Leckie, ABC] Aboriginal Affairs Minister Kyam Maher has authorised a building company to continue the construction of the Riverlea housing project, despite Aboriginal remains being discovered on the site last year.

Bridget-Cama.jpg

A year after the Voice referendum, First Nations leaders are 'continuing on heartbroken [Madeleine Wedesweiler, Ewa Staszewska, SBS] When the Indigenous Voice referendum was voted down on 14 October last year, Aboriginal leader and academic Marcia Langton declared "reconciliation is dead”. Bridget Cama is the youth co-chair at the Uluru Dialogue and says although she's spent much of the past year in mourning, she is now feeling optimistic about the path forward for Indigenous advancement.

bottom of page