On Country - Photography from Australia

‘Country’ is a term embodied by First Peoples in Australia to describe the lands, waterways, seas and cosmos to which they are connected. It represents Ancestral ties to a place, and the living cultural presence of that place, and references the complex relationship land has to language, family and identity. Being ‘on Country’ is more than just being situated somewhere, it is about being shaped by that place, connected to it, and having a responsibility to care for it.

Placing First Peoples’ practice and relationality at the core of this project – accompanying a landmark exhibition at the Rencontres d’Arles 2025 – On Country: Photography from Australia brings together Indigenous and non-Indigenous artists who bear witness to both the visible and invisible aspects of being on Country.

The project explores old and new relationships between Country and colonialism, community, and identity in Australia today, shifting the power dynamics inherent in photography, and redefining photographic practice on this southern land.