Beyond Refuge: Dialogues diversifies the refugee experience

A collection of five video works created by artists with refugee and asylum-seeker backgrounds has launched at Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre.

Beyond Refuge: Dialogues is part of local arts organisation CuriousWorks’ three-year creative development project for artists who seek to change the asylum-seeker narrative by producing art on their own terms.

Mayor Wendy Waller welcomed the exhibition to Liverpool and congratulated artists Ali Al Azeez, Elham BehinAein, Samia Halabi, Ali Mousawi and Daisy Montalvo on their hard work.

“This project shows that the refugee and asylum-seeker experience cannot be restricted to one story,” Mayor Waller said.

“Liverpool is a Refugee Welcome Zone and our doors are open to people who seek a new home and life.”

Beyond exploring complex cultural and socio-political identities, the stories told in Beyond Refuge: Dialogues also articulate what it means to be human. The artists connect with a variety of themes – from friendship and freedom to the consequences of forced migration.

Western Sydney filmmaker Daisy Montalvo’s film El Baile is a cinematic poem that was developed from a recorded conversation Montalvo had with her cousin about her migrant journey and passion for dance.

“In Western Sydney, we have such a big range of cultures and stories that are being left untold,” Montalvo said.

“As a young person in my high school years, I didn’t think it was possible for me to make films but that’s why it’s important to share these stories – to inspire other young creatives too.”

The films in Beyond Refuge: Dialogues will be screening in the Marsden Gallery at Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre until 23 June 2019.

For more information, please visit: https://curiousworks.com.au/projects/current-projects/beyond-refuge/

Image: A scene from Daisy Montalvo’s film El Baile