EVENT: Skywest Public Lecture

What do we mean when we recognise a person, object, idea or practice as ‘creative’? Creativity is a notoriously difficult concept to pin down, more easily recognised as a personal quality than an abstraction. In recent discussions of Indigenous intellectual property rights, creativity is perhaps not something that is intrinsic to a person but indicative of wider knowledge sharing practices. Dr Richard Davis explores how male dancers from the Saibai Island in northwest Torres Strait seek recognition and renown through creation of dance. He shows how these men achieve lasting recognition through innovations in style, without holding exclusive control over the creation. Dr Richard Davis is an Assistant Professor in Anthropology and Sociology at The University of Western Australia. In addition to his scholarly work he has worked in the areas of native title and cultural heritage assessment. Dr Davis has held several academic positions and written and edited numerous publications including Woven Histories, Dancing Lives: Identity, Culture, History and Torres Strait Islanders.