Nakara Wandurk (A Spirit Ancestor), Bark Painting (detail), Ngalhlgaya, 1989, Nakara Language Group, ochres on eucalyptus bark, central Arnhem Land, Robert Bleakley Collection

Bleakley Collection

Works from the BAMM Collection

Collected by Robert Bleakley during his tenure as Head of Tribal Art at Sotheby’s in the 1970s, this significant collection of Aboriginal objects offers a rare opportunity to engage with the material culture of First Nations communities from across Australia. Comprising carved tools, ceremonial objects and early examples of cultural exchange, many of the objects were originally taken to Britain by colonial travellers as 'souvenirs'.  The collection invites critical reflection on histories of collection, displacement and the enduring cultural knowledge embodied in each object.  

Donor: Robert Bleakley
Opening:
Thursday 5 June 5:30pm
Exhibition:
6 June –19 July 2025
Where:
BAMM Gallery
FREE