Australia wide

Aboriginal Celebrations

Yabun Festival
The festival is held in Sydney, New South Wales
in the month of January
Yabun is the largest single day Indigenous festival in
Australia, drawing an audience of between 10,000
and 15,000 people on Australia Day. It is one of the
most important Indigenous music events in the
country reflecting the wealth of Indigenous creative
talent. Some of Australia's best Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander music from around the country is
featured, from well established artists to those just
emerging on the scene. Yabun also delivers a current
and informative cultural program, with discussions
and speeches by some of the Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander community's most recognised leaders,
academics, politicians and artists.

 The Saltwater Freshwater celebration is held in New South Wales,

in many locations across the state. The festival is held in January.
The Saltwater Freshwater Festival is a nomadic event that moves
to a different location on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales
each Australia Day providing a range of healthy, family-friendly
activities for the community to enjoy. It is the only Aboriginal
cultural festival of its kind in New South Wales. The festival
features arts, music, dance, workshops and cultural traditions. It
provides an authentic Aboriginal experience for visitors, families
and local communities wishing to experience traditional and
contemporary Australian Aboriginal culture. The 2013 Saltwater
Freshwater Festival is held in on 26 January each year.

Spirit Festival
The Spirit Festival is held in Adelaide, South
Australiain February
The Spirit Festival is South Australia's premier
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts and
Cultural Festival. With more than 100 dancers
and singers from across the country, the
festival presents a vibrant celebration of
traditional and contemporary Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander culture, art, dance and
music. A smoking ceremony is performed to
welcome all visitors to Palti Yerta (dance
ground) in Kaurna country, the traditional
owners of the land on which the event is held.
The Spirit Festival is a special event of great
beauty and cultural significance.

Melbourne Indigenous Arts Festival

The Melbourne Indigenous Arts Festival is
held in February.
Melbourne Indigenous Arts Festival
celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander culture with a diverse range of
events including traditional and
contemporary Indigenous theatre, screen,
dance, cabaret, visual art, spoken word,
opera and conversation. National
established and upcoming performers
attend the eleven day festival which attracts
a national audience who are invited to check
out its wide range of arts events. Events
include Koorioboree, a cultural dance
gathering and Aboriginal Heritage Walks
that give an insight into the Wurundjeri,
Boonerwrung, Taungurong, Djajawurrung
and the Wathaurung that make up the
Kulin Nation.

Homeground
The Homeground festival is held in Sydney,
New South Wales in April
Homeground, which was formerly known as
Message Sticks, is an annual multi-arts held
at the Sydney Opera House, celebrating
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists.
It features song, dance, film, discussion and
art, fusing contemporary and traditional
cultural art forms. Now in its 13th year, the
festival is held on the lands of the Gadigal
Peoples, at one of the great meeting places,
Bennelong Point. Previous festival highlights
have included Dancestry - a free modern day
corroboree held during sunset.

 The Tjungu Festival is held at the Voyages Ayers Rock Resort, Northern
Territory in April
Held at Voyages Ayers Rock Resort in April, the free four day family-friendly
Tjungu Festival celebrates Indigenous culture through everything from
culture to fashion, sport to music and art to food. In local Anangu
language, Tjungu means meeting or coming together and provides a
fantastic opportunity for attendees to be fully immersed in Australian
Indigenous and local Anangu culture. There's a bush tucker master class
with Indigenous chefs, a concert of contemporary and traditional music as
well as the Tjungu Cup - an AFL match.

 The Ord Valley Muster is held in Kununurra, Western Australia in

May
The Ord Valley Muster is a two week festival held in the remote east
Kimberley region of Western Australia. What began as a fun one
night event a dinner in the outback for local businesses has
transformed into a two week festival of more than 50 events
celebrating the spirit, talent and cultural diversity of the Kimberley.
The program includes sport, art, music and nature-based events
from mountain bike challenges to cooking demonstrations to bush
walks and basketball carnivals. There are markets, art exhibitions,
and music under the stars; and festive street parties and
Indigenous events including the Waringarri Corroboree.

 The National Indigenous Music Awards, is held in Darwin, Northern Territory in

May
Indigenous Australias music is recognised through The National Indigenous
Music Awards (NIMAs) which is held each August in Darwin. The awards highlight
new acts, those who are receiving international acclaim and pays homage to acts
who have paved the way some years before. NIMAs is a family-friendly awards
night that is held annually in Darwin at the Gardens Amphitheatre and features
live music performances from leading Indigenous musicians throughout the
evening. In 2013, NIMA celebrated 10 years of recognising Indigenous music and
continues to be the main event in the Indigenous music calendar.

Laura Dance Festival

Yimbala
The Laura Aboriginal Dance Festival, is held in Cape
York Peninsula, Queenslandin June
Every two years in June, hundreds of dancers and
thousands of visitors flock to the tiny town of Laura
on the remote Cape York Peninsula for the Laura
Aboriginal Dance Festival. Aboriginal communities
from across the Cape York Peninsula celebrate and
share their culture through dance, song, art and
performance. Families reconnect and pass down
stories while travellers come to experience a culture
dating back more than 40,000 years. Pitch a tent in
the festival campsite, held on sacred grounds near
Lauras renowned prehistoric rock art. Laura can be
reached on the Great Tropical Drive between
Cooktown and Mareeba.

Mowanjum festival
The Mowanjum Festival, is held at Kimberley,
Western Australiain July
Experience the unique art and culture of the
Worrorra, Ngarinyin and Wunumbal peoples
of the Western Kimberley, in this familyfriendly, one day and one night event. Held at
the Mowanjum Art and Culture Centre, the
festival features over 100 Indigenous dance
performers, boab tree nut carving,
didgeridoo workshops and magnificent
corroborrees. Mowanjum Art and Culture
Centre is approximately 12 kilometres from
Derby along the Gibb River Road in Western
Australias remote Kimberley region.

 The Walking with Spirits festival is held in Beswick, Northern

Territory in the month of July
Travel deep into the Aboriginal Dreamtime at Walking with Spirits, a
unique weekend of cultural immersion held in late July or early
August. The location is Malkgulumbutu, a sacred waterfall and
lakeside site around 100 kilometres south-east of Katherine. Here the
Jawoyn people share their story through traditional corroborree as
well as dance, music, puppetry, film and fiery images. Camp amongst
the paperbark trees and connect with the spirit ancestors who
shaped the land, animals, plants and seasons. This is the only time
of year you can visit this remote and beautiful location, and tickets to
the event are limited.

 NAIDOC Week is held Australia wide, in July.

In July every year, NAIDOC Week celebrates the history, culture and
achievements of Australias Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. NAIDOC
originally stood for National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance
Committee which was responsible for organising national activities which has
since become the name of the week itself. Today, capital cities and local
communities celebrate through family fun days that showcase Indigenous culture
and provide a gathering place. In addition, a different city is selected to host the
National NAIDOC Awards Ceremony which honours the achievements of
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair

The Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair is held in Darwin,
Northern Territory in August
Bark paintings, metal sculptures, didgeridoos,
fibre art and jewellery are just some of the diverse
art works for sale in the Darwin Aboriginal Art
Fair in August. Its a unique opportunity for
visitors to buy direct from more than 40
community-owned Aboriginal art centres from
across Australia. Visitors will discover emerging
and established artists, be able to talk to the
artists themselves and learn about the distinctive
artistic styles of different cultural groups. See
woven baskets from East Gippsland, Dreamtime
dot paintings from Alice Springs; and the ochrecoloured canvas paintings produced by the
Warmun artists of the Kimberley region.

 The Cairns Indigenous Art Fair, is held in Cairns, Queenslandin

August
Cairns Indigenous Art Fair (CIAF) is a unique three-day event that
merges an art market with a celebration of Queensland Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander cultures. It is the only art fair in Australia that
exclusively sells and showcases art by Queensland Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander artists. There are public talks and forums,
including the CIAF Symposium, where leading Australian and
international speakers, artists, and collectors discuss Queensland
Indigenous art. Children and families can get involved in hands-on art
activities. There is a program of free Indigenous dance and a warm
welcome from the traditional owners, the Yidinji.

National Aboriginal and Torres Strait

Islander Art
The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander Art Award, is held in Darwin, Northern
Territory from August October.
The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander Art Award was initiated by the Museum
and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory in
1984. Today it offers the highest prize money for
any art award in Australia. The award attracts a
broad range of artistic talent from around the
country presenting a diversity of styles, with
more than 150 works on exhibition. It is a
showcase for both established and emerging
artists and has come to be regarded as one of the
premier national events in the Australian
Indigenous art calendar.

 The Garma Festival, is held in Gukula, Northern Territory, in

August
The Northern Territory's Yolngu culture is celebrated in this
three day event that has earned a strong following Australia
wide. The annual festival traditionally opens with a Yidaki
(didjeridu) performance and is then followed by the festival
events of visual art exhibitions, ancient storytelling, dance,
music, forums, education and training programs. The Garma
Festival is particularly known for its connection between
Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians through its
display of cultural practice and cross cultural learning.

 The Desert Mob festival is in Alice Springs, Northern Territoryin September

The Desert Mob Symposium is an exploration of Aboriginal artists, their art
and their Art Centres. The program is the only forum of its kind and
provides a window to the Aboriginal Art Centre world. Aboriginal artists
from Desart member Art Centres together with interstate guests perform a
program of stories, song, images, film and dance about culture, country and
art. The Desert Mob MarketPlace is a large indoor-outdoor market with stalls
selling affordable Aboriginal art, crafts and products including wood
carvings, bush medicine and weavings and refreshments.

 Corroboree Sydney is held in Sydney, New South Wales in

November
Held in November, Corroboree Sydney is an annual
Sydney festival that combines leading Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander artists, writers, dancers and
musicians as they showcase their unique talents and
flair. There will be visual arts, literature and performing
arts as well as artist workshops over the eleven day event.
The event was held for the first time in 2013.

References All this information was found from

http://
www.australia.com/en/events/Aboriginal-events.html