subject: Preserving The Secret Messages In Aboriginal Art [print this page] There are so many different forms of art all over the modern world from all corners of the globe. Likewise, centuries, or even, millennia ago, there was also art in so many different forms in different mediums worldwide. However, before the modern age of travel, the art would be practised and seen only by people within its own societies, whereas nowadays we can all share what artists from all walks of life from all over the world have to offer. From dot painting in what is now known as Australia to totem poles in more modern North America, there is something different in every corner of the globe.
To concentrate on the indigenous arts and the Aboriginal dot painting we would like to draw your attention to the many forms of Australian aboriginal art and the possible meanings and reasons for Aboriginal symbols used in indigenous Australia.
Some people could argue that the reason the indigenous Australians (otherwise known as Aboriginal people) used dots to create images is that it was all they could do with the tools they had. Without proper brushes, the right paint, or the medium to paint on, they just created images by connecting thousands of dots. These people believe that this is the only reason and nothing else. However, there is also a growing number of others who believe that there is more to it, and that these Aboriginal dot paintings actually contain some kind of secret message, a message whose code could be lost forever.
In the early 1970s the Aboriginal people of Papunya were encouraged by the modern society to practise their traditional dot paintings on canvas, rather than on easily degradable media, such as the sand that the Western desert aboriginal people were used to. While this has helped people of future generations to understand Australian indigenous arts and learn from this ancient art of dot painting, there are a number of indigenous Australians who are less than agreeable. The argument they have is that these art forms and messages which were once used in sacred or secret Aboriginal ceremonies are now out in the open for anyone and everyone from other societies to see and know. Their worry is understandable, as there is a great deal of belief in the afterlife and other supernatural activity within their culture.
Nowadays, there is a divide, but not always a clear one, between those people who genuinely want to preserve the ancient forms of Aboriginal art for future generations, thus continuing its belief and following for future generations, and those who just want to gain some financial profit at any cost. This second group cares little for the secret meanings or special sacred feelings of indigenous Australian art. These people are often known as 'carpetbaggers' and have little or no interest in the art itself, other than how it can make them money.
