In February, students from two of our country’s leading arts training organisations – NAISDA and NIDA – came together for an intensive weeklong collaboration to explore creative partnerships, cross-cultural storytelling and multidisciplinary approaches to performance.
The unique program, which first began in 2019, encouraged students to consider cross-cultural arts practice and explore the space between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Knowings and non-Indigenous perspectives. It was led by Wakka Wakka and Kombumerri dancer, choreographer and performer Katina Olsen. Leading First Nations artists and cultural contributors also included Dr Nerida Blair, Nardi Simpson and Uncle Gavi Duncan.
We had a yarn with Katina and Bob Cousins, NIDA Course Leader for Design and Performance to find out more.
Please introduce yourself and tell us a bit about your role in the collaboration.
Katina: I’m Katina Olsen. I was born on Darumbal Country in Rockhampton where I did a lot of my dance training before joining Bangarra Dance Theatre and working as a dancer for four years. Currently my practice spans across quite a few areas including performing, choreography, acting and cofounding a collective called Dance Makers Collective.
My role was to facilitate the collaboration between NAISDA and NIDA – sharing provocation, leading sessions, sharing a bit about my practice and how I make dance.
Bob: I’m Bob Cousins, I’ve been working in design for about 30 years. My role at NIDA has a responsibility for the BFA designers and how they fit into the broader ecology of the NIDA school.
This was the first year NIDA designers participated in the collaboration with NAISDA, so my focus was to shepherd ideas through the working groups, offer provocations, encourage the students to think about design in a more open-ended way and how that could become part of the broader collaboration.
Tell us a bit about what the week involved.
Katina: The week involved a lot of learnings and a full schedule. Dr Nerida Blair shared a session on Lilyology , and Yuwaalaraay storyteller and performer Nadi Simpson also joined us to share teachings.
The week was about getting to know each other, how to relate to each other, how to bring skills to the room, how to give space, take space and share space. If you’re naturally a leader, how do you bring that skill to the room and when do you step back to let other voices come forward?
Bob: Uncle Gavi took us to Bulgandry Aboriginal Art Site for a Welcome to Darkinjung Country so the week started with an incredibly expansive and generous introduction. It was a great way to open the week and our thinking, it really built the foundations for everything that came after.
A real focus was considering how we work together, develop ideas, collaborate. We tried as much as possible to concentrate on the process, not the outcomes to develop a strong process that students can reflect on and bring back to the creative space.
Did the collaboration follow a specific theme?
Katina: We were given Crossing the Line as a theme to explore, which was a topic that came from a previous workshop hosted by Wiradjuri woman, independent artist and NAISDA graduate Vicki Van Hout. It asked the questions: How far can you cross the line? Who can cross the line? Is it different as a First Nations person to cross the line on a certain subject? What happens if a non-Indigenous person crosses the line pushing the boundaries of a subject?
During the week we saw the working groups take the stimulus of Crossing the Line, but we’ve also seen the theme play out in collaborations. For example, during one session there was a ‘crossing the line’ when we mixed up the working groups, so participants received feedback from people outside their group. The leaning into, or resisting of, what happened in that process was really interesting. It was also really beautiful seeing what came out of a situation that was quite challenging and difficult for some.
Bob: An additional unwritten theme was based on the fact that the majority of participants from NIDA were not First Nations students, so we were really considering how we navigate this space in a safe and culturally strong way. I’d say this sat under the week’s learnings, and it was really great to see how it played out.
Why are collaborations like this so important?
Katina: There’s no way that you can write a formula for collaboration. You learn to collaborate as you’re collaborating. And it’s different for each scenario, each group, each creative team that you have on a project. That’s why opportunities like this are so important, they give students the opportunity to experience what the process is like.
What do you think the students gained from the experience?
Bob: I think for the students at NIDA, getting out of the School and into another world, another place, another mindset has helped open their thinking in ways we won’t even realise until further down the track.
Katina: We held debriefs at the end of each day where everyone was invited to share reflections on the day. What we witnessed was that the takings from each day, and from different sessions, were so diverse.
A huge learning was based on relationships – building relationships and learning how to work with people in a creative team; who to invite on a creative team and what kind of dynamic to set up if you are leading a space.
Bob: I think another great learning came from opening the door to students being outside of their own practice they are training in and stepping into another practice. We saw dancers contribute incredible costume designs and design students really embedded in the movement of a piece.
Katina: Yes, having the chance to work intensely alongside people from diverse practices really gives an understanding and respect of different creative disciplines that can then be carried into professional careers.
Bob: For NIDA’s second-year design students, this is the year that they really start to step out of the hypothetical world into a more realised space, so for them this was an opportunity to deal with the tensions and resistance of creative collaboration. To be able to do that within the open and generous spirit of the week’s learning space was incredibly beneficial.
Were there any standout memories or take-home experiences for you?
Bob: The collaboration was full of highlights – the way the whole week developed; the collaborative energy; the ebbs and flows. Tuesday morning was a particular highlight when we spent a session weaving with NAISDA graduates Aroha Pehi and Amy Flannery. Watching the groups gather, working with the material and discussing ideas was really great.
Katina: Yes! Seeing the yarning that came out of the weaving space showed it is a way to decolonise a message or an approach to collaboration. A lot of yarns happened organically and without pressure while this ancient practice of weaving was shared amongst a diversity of students.
Bob: It was also interesting to see that often when the groups became ‘stuck’ throughout the week, they went back to weaving to find a way through it.
Katina: As well as that, I think for me, witnessing individuals and groups who were feeling challenged or stuck but then seeing the new energy that came from it, is a real stand out memory. Those real, revelation moments are wonderful to witness.
Thank you so much Bob and Katina for sharing your valuable time and insight with us today.
For further information visit katinaolsen.com and nida.edu.au/home