In envisioning a timeless and historical scene that represents the ultimate expression of ancestral devotion and veneration, Maree Nikimaya brings together key ancestral figures, motifs, and archaeological iconography that meld into 'Steel Karkade'; an ode to afro-surrealism and Black spirituality.
Key figures in the work like the central veiled figure, modelled after her great aunt Amoweng, a witch doctor, are emblematic of the importance of preserving Nilotic indigenous spiritual practices that have roots in animism and in South Sudan.
Please join us to celebrate the opening of this exhibition at First Site Gallery, 5– 7pm, Wednesday 8 April.
Born in Lutruwita/Tasmania, Maree Nikimaya’s art practice is heavily influenced by the complexity and rich history of her South Sudanese background and afrosurrealism, the genre sublimely encapsulating the dark, exploitative, and bizarre but beautifully surreal multidimensional aspects of the Black experience. The impetus of Nikimaya’s practice is to utilise the afro-surreal genre, Black horror film influences and animism-based spirituality, to display the non-monolithic experiences of Black women in the diaspora and in her own cultural landscape of South Sudan and Sudan.
Image: Maree Nikimaya, ‘Steel Karkade’ (detail), 2025, oil on canvas. Image by Eliza Baker, courtesy of the artist.
11am - 5pm Tuesday to Friday
Closed on public holidays
'Surging through exits when the bell goes' is a design-led research project that examines how the aesthetics of high school environments and digital platforms shape the hidden curriculum of contemporary education. It traces how physical architectures of control have evolved into the visual and behavioural architectures of digital systems, focusing on behaviour monitoring systems.
'Inheritance' is an immersive installation that transforms everyday materials into vessels of memory, care and connection. Through fragile yet grounded forms made from broken gum tree branches, turmeric and handwoven Bangladeshi Khadi, the work explores how making can hold and pass on inherited stories across generations and geographies.
'Steel Karkade' showcases the multifaceted experiences of Black women in the diaspora, as well as the artist’s South Sudanese heritage. For her, the livelihoods and narratives of her ancestors and the Black women who came before her are significantly underrepresented and unwritten; her practice endeavours to bring light and permanence to their stories and cultural history.
RMIT University acknowledges the people of the Woi wurrung and Boon wurrung language groups of the eastern Kulin Nation on whose unceded lands we conduct the business of the University. RMIT University respectfully acknowledges their Ancestors and Elders, past and present. RMIT also acknowledges the Traditional Custodians and their Ancestors of the lands and waters across Australia where we conduct our business - Artwork 'Sentient' by Hollie Johnson, Gunaikurnai and Monero Ngarigo.
Learn more about our commitment to Indigenous cultures
