Paperbark, memory and survival: Michelle Adams debuts at PICA’s Revealed
A paperbark-and-found-objects installation honouring her grandmother has brought Yindjibarndi artist Michelle Adams to the Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts, where she is making her debut in the Revealed: New and Emerging WA Aboriginal Artists exhibition. Adams’ work, titled Millstream Homestead?
My Yindjibarndi Country 2025, marks a shift from painting to installation. “I’m turning from the canvas where I would ordinarily just sit and paint with a brush, but with my installation piece, I’m actually weaving a narrative with my voice,” the 55-year-old said.
She said the piece speaks to her grandmother, her mother’s mother, who was born and worked on country during the assimilation era. “They weren’t citizens, they, to put it kindly, were indentured labour,” Adams said, adding that her grandmother, who died about eight years ago, was a powerful traditional woman who taught her about country and Yindjibarndi identity.
Adams traces her artistic life to watching her late mother, Eve, paint for weeks on end, telling “big, important stories” from Yindjibarndi culture. Eve was one of the first teacher assistants at Roebourne Primary School in the 1970s and taught Adams alongside many others.
“Some of the artists who are painting today, some of the other ladies that I grew up with in Roebourne, were all taught by my mum,” she said. Adams also credited her aunty Mavis Pat, whose son John Pat’s death in custody triggered the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, with shaping her commitment to art and social justice — an early path that led her to law before she moved to the creative arts.
Her practice has included collaborations with communities and elders and work with Big hART, including the co-creation of Punkaliyarra, developed with Yindjibarndi elders and senior women and presented at Sydney Opera House and Perth Festival 2023. More recently she joined the Yinjaa-Barni Art collective, drawn by its ethos — Yinjaa-Barni translates as “together we are one.” “We sit together and we paint as a family,” Adams said.
“There’s the safety aspect of being where your artwork is never wrong. Your curious nature to explore all forms of art is very much valued.” Adams’ installation is among more than 180 works by 101 artists in Revealed, described as the State’s largest celebration of Aboriginal art.
Delivered under the custodianship of the Aboriginal Art Centre Hub Western Australia (AACHWA), the exhibition runs at PICA from April 18 to June 14 and is curated by Zali Morgan. It is accompanied by the Revealed Art Market at WA Museum Boola Bardip on April 18.
All proceeds from Revealed artwork sales go directly towards supporting artists, art centres and communities across WA.