Illustrated lecture – Colin Golvan AM KC – Protecting Indigenous Art

4 – 4.30pm - Arrive to view exhibition
4.30-5.30pm - Illustrated lecture
5.30 – 6pm - Drinks & nibbles in the foyer

Join leading intellectual property barrister, Colin Golvan AM KC, as he discusses his new book Protecting Indigenous Art – From T-Shirts to the Flag (2024). Golvan will provide a first-hand account of landmark legal campaigns such as the unauthorised reproduction of prominent Bulun Bulun artworks on T-shirts, the seminal carpets case, the campaign to recover the copyright of Arrernte artist Albert Namatjira and the extraordinary story of the Aboriginal flag.

The unauthorised use of Indigenous art is a global problem that threatens cultural integrity and the livelihoods of artists and their communities. While Western notions of individual ownership often clash with Indigenous concepts of custodianship, copyright remains a vital tool to protect visual artists from fakes and appropriation.

A copy of Protecting Indigenous Art – From T-Shirts to the Flag (2024) will be available to purchase from the MPRG shop.

Colin Golvan AM KC is a Victorian Bar King’s Counsel specialising in intellectual property and trade practices law, appointed senior counsel in 2002 after joining the Bar in 1988. He is a leading authority on copyright, particularly in protecting Indigenous art, and the author of Protecting Indigenous Art Protecting Indigenous Art – From T-Shirts to the Flag (2024), as well as several other legal texts.

Beyond law, Colin has a rich creative career as a playwright, author, and screenwriter, with works including Theatre Daze, Eichmann in Haifa, and scripts for ABC and SBS. He has also served on numerous arts boards, including Viscopy, Writing Australia, and the Arts Law Centre, and has chaired the Indigenous Barristers Committee of the Victorian Bar.

A dedicated educator, he has lectured on Indigenous copyright at Australian and international universities, including Columbia University, and taught the Arts Law course at Melbourne University. In recognition of his contributions to law and the arts, Colin was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in 2018.

Image: Protecting Indigenous Art front cover, © Colin Golvan AM KC