Tiarnie Edwards. JamFactory. Gallery Two. 29 Oct 2025

 

A new generation of artists is exploring Aboriginal identity and cultural preservation through contemporary formats, and Ngarrindjeri artist Tiarnie Edwards is leading the way with their new solo exhibition Good Trouble.

Nestled in the glass displays of JamFactory’s Gallery Two, Edwards has created a striking presentation of colour and play. Grounding the install together is a bold, fiery red adorning every surface, coating the gallery in screaming warmth to backdrop their ceramic forms. This hue brings many interpretations – the heat of our harsh summer climate, the red earth beneath us, a feeling of rage and fury, and the sweltering burn of a firing kiln. There’s also a playful, childlike element to it, something that harks back to preschool building blocks and primary coloured furniture items. It evokes nostalgia for a time before westernised product design and interior decor leaned into the world of monochromatic minimalism.

 

 Tiarnie Edwards, Good Trouble install view. Image: Chira Grasby

 

This childlike play is mirrored in Edwards’ ceramic figures, reminiscent of toys and cartoons from the turn of the millennium. These small, yet sturdy characters are littered across the red landscape, enveloping the audience like a large, long-form comic strip. A combination of human figures and animals peers out at us, including dingoes, an emu, and a kangaroo. The humans appear to be younger in stature, suggestive of youths or teenagers, dressed in sneakers, hoodies, and knitted balaclavas. Plastered across their jumpers are bold slogans, formatted like street graffiti and advertisements. “Filled With Rage” reads one, “Resist” says another. These are clear as political statements, rooted in the post-colonial realities of systemic racism and vilification faced by Aboriginal communities around the nation. This is particularly clear for one that reads “Bully Cops, Not Pigs”, a direct comment on police brutality and negative bias towards Blak populations, where the text humorously frames a cute portrait of a cartoon pig. This light-hearted approach for conveying a heavily weighted topic sets the tone for Good Trouble, which juxtaposes the strength and power of First Nations’ experiences, as well as activism and political turmoil, with an endearing, often 'cute’ appearance.

Tiarnie Edwards, Lil Bro and Big Bro (install view). Image: Chira Grasby.

 

Edwards only started working with ceramics in 2022 while studying at the University of SA, yet the age-old material is now a driving force within their practice. The use of clay as a staple medium forms a collaboration with the earth—a creative addition to the artist’s existing connection to Country. As generations of their family before them, Edwards is reaching for organic materials as a vessel for storytelling, and contemporising it through their use of modern shapes, underglaze paints, and firing techniques. Their works champion self-definition, resistance, and empowerment, reminding me of a quote from Lowitja Institute’s Executive Manager (Research and Knowledge Translation) and current ANTAR Board Director, Jaki Adams. Published after her visit to the Wiyi Yani U Thangani (Women’s Voices) Institute for First Nations Gender Justice, 2024, Adams noted: “... Blak Excellence (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voices, leadership and innovation) is our past, our present, and our future.”

This simple yet strong reflection is rooted in thousands of years of cultural practice, noting how prominent and unwavering the voices of Aboriginal people are, and continue to be. Adams speaks of the fierce strength held by Aboriginal communities, in particular women, as pioneers and protectors of cultural practice. As an emerging artist, Edwards exists in the next wave of these pioneers, bringing a younger generation of voices to the conversation. They shift these existing sentiments of unrest and determination and blend them with influences of modern life. They create pieces that, whilst playfully fun and commercially appealing for wider audiences to consume, still hold the deep weight of their predecessors.

 

Tiarnie Edwards, Sacred Rage, 280 x 360 x 10 cm, stoneware and underglaze. Image: Chira Grasby.

 

As well as ceramic critters, Edwards also presents a series of six carved stoneware slabs. These appear inspired by block prints produced from lino or wood carvings, which were popular production methods for political and activism posters throughout the 20th century. In Australia, the British and colonists initially used print media, as a means of spreading misinformation and disdain towards Aboriginal people. As a defiant counteraction, Aboriginal activists reclaimed the medium, seeing print as an ally for sharing their own voices. In his 1989 presentation at the Australian Print Symposium at Canberra’s National Gallery of Art, respected artist and founding member of Boomalli Aboriginal Artists co-operative, Jeff Samuels, reflected on the relevance of printmaking for Aboriginal peoples. He discussed how contemporary printmaking shares commonalities with both art and functional items being made in this country for centuries and millennia. The acts of carving, of being close to the earth, using one's hands as tools, and physical movements mirror those of traditional painting.

“I think a lot of people see Aboriginal people as ‘Once upon a time’ people.” he says. “But the fact is they are alive and growing stronger. It is my birthright that allows me to be who I am.” Samuels states this to emphasise that Aboriginal people are part of the now, and not just an element of the past: it therefore makes sense that they would adopt new mediums and shifts in the arts scene as new possibilities occur.

With carved text like “Sacred Rage” (pictured above), and “We Keep Us Safe”, Edwards draws connection to the strength of community, of power in numbers, and the culmination of not only living voices, but also those who came before. The panels are displayed hanging from wire, floating above the ceramic figurines, and propped like collectible display plates. They further enforce the visual appearance of this exhibition as a form of comic-strip installation. Their jagged pointed edges – formatted like comic-strip, pop-up reactions – partner with the figures to tell a story of Aboriginal youth in the contemporary era. Repeated throughout the exhibition is the moniker ‘Hooligan’, a term attached by Edwards to the mischievous balaclava-clad dingoes, as well as a carving of them warming their paws against the heat of a burning police vehicle.

After presenting in the 2024 Helpmann Academy Graduate Exhibition, and Hatched 2004: National Graduate Show at Perth’s PICA, Edwards’ Good Trouble maintains robust momentum for the emerging practitioner. This bold exhibition, presented as part of JamFactory’s Tarnanthi line-up, highlights the talent of one of SA’s brightest young artists, and paves the way for myriad amazing opportunities on their horizon.

 

Chira Grasby

 

When: 27 Sept to 23 Nov

Where: JamFactory: Gallery Two

More info: jamfactory.com.au

 

 

 

 

 

Tiarnie Edwards, Hooligan (2025)

Buff Raku Trachyte (BRT) and underglaze, 30 x 30 x 30 cm.

JamFactory: Gallery Two

Image: Chira Grasby