Let’s Talk…The Arts with Stephanie Parkin
This week on Let’s Talk…The Arts, Rachael digs into one of the big questions that shapes the work of art-making: how to make sure that your intellectual property is protected even as your work is shared and distributed.
To dig into the nuts and bolts of intellectual property and its complicated relationship to Indigenous sovereignty, cultural appropriation, and power, Rachael catches up with Stephanie Parkin, a proud Quandamooka woman of Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island) who is a well-respected Intellectual Property Lawyer dedicated to promoting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander rights and protocols within the arts and broader industries.
Stephanie believes that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s art is an expression of identity underpinned by knowledge, experience, and connection to country, and she uses the tools of intellectual property and copyright law to protect this work in ways that are culturally safe and appropriate. Within her own Quandamooka community, Stephanie is the director of the Quandamooka Yoolooburrabee Aboriginal Corporation and President of the North Stradbroke Museum on Minjerribah.
In this episode, Rachael and Stephanie reflect on everything from the legal process of copyrighting art work, to the challenge of regulating fake “Aboriginal” art, and the complex relationship between intellectual property and Indigenous sovereignty. Get your cup of tea at the ready: this is a conversation not to be missed.
