BLAK PEARL EXHIBITION 2025
Blak Pearl Studio’s Annual exhibition will be hosted by Brodriggy Brewing Co in Abbotsford
The exhibition will showcase works by artists who use the Blak Pearl Studio - including works from Aunty Colleen Beeton, Thelma Beeton, Clay Holland, Kurly, Aunty Minelle Creed and Jai Wright, Tyrhys Wirrum Wilson. .
The exhibition will also showcase works from our partners and supporters within the metro region including works from the Deadly First Nations Shout Out collective
The exhibition launches on Thusrday the 10th of July from 6-8pm. Please join us for the celebrations!!!
Blak pearl would like to thank all our supporters over the years - from in-kind material donations, discounts and sponsorship of events and exhibitions
We are seeking support for this upcoming exhibition in the form of material sponsorship such as art supplies or stretching and framing
Or
financial sponsorship between $2000-$5000
If you’d like to support Blak Pearl Studio please get in touch
You can also make a tax deductible donation via the Australian Cultural Fund platform - click the DONATE button above
Blak Pearl is a creative studio in Fitzroy that aims to provide a culturally safe environment for local Aboriginal peoples who cannot access mainstream spaces. It is a place to gather and connect, develop and expand on artistic skills, and showcase the artistic outcomes of a talented and underrepresented community.
Wednesday to Friday the Studio provides a cooked lunch, food aid and some material aid, access to artistic materials such as paints, canvas, wood burners etc, and is staffed by members of the local community.
The Studio will release its annual plan of workshops, programs and events soon. The studio is open for use for partnering organisations requiring a community led site that is wheelchair accessible or a culturally safe site to access clients within the region
The initiative aims to establish an appropriate and sustainable sovereign-led operational model and set up a viable permanent space for the community. The first stage of the program is being delivered by Future Tense in partnership with a network of support service organisations such as BAHN Inc, North Richmond Community Health, City of Yarra, Neighbourhood Justice Centre, and Connecting Home, guided by an Elders Advisory Committee.
We need your help to make all this possible!
We are seeking support to cover general operating costs such as staffing, consumables, training, and materials, and to assist us to better represent Blak Pearl artists via this years public activations program.
Your support will enable Blak Pearl to realise its ambitions and create a positive space for its community to thrive.
Donations are tax deductible
IMAGE: Yarri and Patch by Tracy Briggs
IMAGE: Studio Room 1
Blak Pearl is currently closed to public while we transition from pilot phase to a permanent structure.
We aim to recommence the drop in studio 1 day a week in late July 2025
Please get in touch if you would like more information
Our aspirations for the next three years are to:
Expand studio opening hours to five days per week – increasing the number of community members we can serve
Add specialist programming for the specific needs of the Yarra Aboriginal community – to strengthen opportunities for women, youth and queer mob, and,
Provide on-country healing workshops.
Continue to deliver the art program at the Medically Supervised Injecting Rooms
If you would like more information about how you can support Blak Pearl please get in touch - blakpearlfitzroy@gmail.com
Lead Studio Elder
Uncle Ronald (Ringo) Terrick
Wurundjeri Gunai/Kurnai
In the absence of community minded orgs in the yarra catchment that have not corporatised or implemented security measures that impact our people and self determination – Blak Pearl has become a real destination and a community asset. Over the last three years every detail was considered to ensure the Studio’s success – for example Elders and mob from across the State gravitate towards the studio due to its geographical location.
Fitzroy is the centre of our important historical meeting and organising grounds and now more than ever it is important to honour and retain the regions identity as a safe place for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. At the Studio we work at the coalface; we focus on everyday life challenges and barriers that people face. We witness on a daily basis the ongoing impacts of colonisation on folk, their life long battles that stem from generations of disempowerment that have led to complexities so deeply engrained that it can be impossible to imagine a future otherwise. Blak Pearl Studio is a safe space that speaks to what other places and institutions struggle to address. Our team and community have the ability to delve deeper into the aspirations of those experiencing difficult circumstances and disadvantage – unravelling complexity by developing trust and exercising patience and perspective. We take seriously governance that prioritises self determination, we don’t surveil the community, we enact modes of working together that are communal rather than authoritarian, we ensure we are approachable to folk with high levels of mistrust of others, and we accommodate the community with deep understanding at the forefront of how we relate. From folk who are members of the stolen generations, to those who intersect frequently with the justice system – we do our best to pull mob back into community and
towards their destinies.
The Community
“There’s a lot of people in the community that do wood burning, pottery, and painting - there’s so much talent and it’s getting wasted. They’re all coming out of prison... and they have nowhere to paint and show their artwork. There’s a lot of potential [at Florence Peel Centre], it’s a space where people can have time out and feel safe from things like domestic violence and all that. They’ll just paint and heal their soul.”
— Aunty Tracey - Blak Pearl Community Advisor
“This is a golden opportunity for a friendly safe space for my people in Collingwood/ Fitzroy and the city - all the Blackfellas there.”
— Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Elder Uncle Ronald ‘Ringo’ Terrick
“It’s a place to come down to do artwork, share stories. A lot of the people in the community have talent, they just need a push. We never had something like this [Florence Peel Centre] to offer them, so now that they have this you’ll be able to pull a lot of people in and make a change.”
