World comes to new Aboriginal art gallery

The gallery is the first of its kind in the region, an indigenous social enterprise that sells authentic artworks to locals, tourists, businesses and government departments, with a majority of the money going back to the artists.

Although it opened last October, the gallery held its official launch last night, in its premises at the tranquil Yarramundi Reach, a site that was once considered for the National Museum of Australia, just a stone's throw from the National Zoo and Aquarium.

The large, light-filled rooms are full of traditional and contemporary paintings, jewellery, glass works, boomerangs and didgeridoos, by artists from across the region.

Manager Greg Joseph (Yidinji) said the gallery, established by the Burrunju Aboriginal Corporation, had begun as a way of showcasing the work of local Aboriginal artists.