National Museum of Australia

About the Symposium

In 2009 six decades had passed since the 1948 American-Australian Scientific Expedition to Arnhem Land. So it was a fitting moment for celebration, re-evaluation and renewed collaboration between the individuals, institutions and countries touched by this formative research venture.

The Centre for Historical Research at the National Museum of Australia hosted Barks, Birds & Billabongs: Exploring the legacy of the 1948 American-Australian Scientific Expedition to Arnhem Land. This international symposium investigated the Expedition's significant and often controversial legacy. The symposium was organised around three core themes: Histories, Legacies and Continuity & Change. Particular emphasis was placed on Indigenous perspectives.

Representatives of Indigenous communities from Arnhem Land (including Yirrkala, Groote Eylandt, Gunbalanya and Milingimbi) participated throughout the symposium. Indigenous participants were also given opportunities to reconnect with collections held by the Museum and other cultural institutions in Canberra. The two key American institutions involved in the original Expedition – the National Geographic Society and the Smithsonian Institution – were also represented at this interdisciplinary event.

A number of special interest group workshops were held on the final day of the symposium. These workshops brought together experts from around Australia and the United States of America in fields such as bark painting research and conservation, film archiving, digital repatriation and the natural sciences.

Several free public events were held in conjunction with the symposium. A national competition open to secondary school students in years 11 and 12 was also run in conjunction with the symposium and with the support of the Embassy of the United States of America, Principals Australia, the Dare to Lead program and the Fulbright Commission.

Audio on demand

Most conference papers now available as audio on demand.

> Listen to Barks, Birds & Billabongs

Online archive

> The 1948 Expedition
> The AASEAL collection
> Program overview
> Events
> Speakers program
> Panels, speakers and abstracts
> Papers
> Special interest groups
> Sponsors
> Steering committee
> Contacts

Further information

Further information on the Arnhem Land Expedition and relevant collections (held at the National Museum of Australia and at other institutions throughout Australia and the United States of America) will also be made available through this website. As one of the long-term outcomes of the symposium the Museum intends to develop an online resource which includes a portal to collections associated with the 1948 Expedition located in institutions around the world.

We would welcome any additional information relating to the Expedition, associated collections, the Expedition members and their descendants.

Contact details

For general queries in relation to the symposium please contact:

Katherine Aigner
Phone: 61 2 6208 5093
Email: Katherine.Aigner@nma.gov.au