Australia's Art and culture is a fine reflection of both contemporary and traditional societies dating back to the era

of the Aboriginal Islanders. The indigenous inhabitants of Australia known as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders were a diverse group of people with varied cultural beliefs, practices and traditions and spoke many different languages. The foundation for all art in based on Aboriginal traditional culture. Modern Australia's art and culture derives much of its inspiration from the Anglo-Celtic Australians, the Aboriginals and also the various migrant cultures. Australia's art and cultural scenario today is a vibrant one consisting of the performing arts like music and dance, as well as the Visual arts.

Art To properly understand any art, you need to know the artist, their culture, history & thinking. Therefore to understand Aboriginal art in the 20th and 21st century, we need to consider some history of our people. Australian Aboriginals have inhabited Australia since the dawn of recorded history & are considered to have the oldest continuing culture on earth. Present day Aboriginals are descended from several groups that came to Australia via Asia when the land bridge still existed. After Bass strait formed, some of the earliest arrivals were stranded in Tasmania, but the peoples inhabiting the mainland are a mixture of people who arrived at different times early in history. Incidently the last group of people who arrived brought the dingo with them, leading it is believe to the extinction of the thymaine from mainland Australia. Early Australian societies were not as isolated or as "primative" as Europeans later thought. For examples, most tribes were no where near as nomadic as often thought. Much of Australia is food rich for Aboriginal persons, so they often had little need to. Most clans did travel over a small area to take advantage of seasonal food & climate. This was often more by choice than necessity. Clans & tribes also traveled (sometimes considerable distances) for social & religious reasons. One advantage of this was that inter-tribal marriages were thus possible, preserving genetic diversity. Of course in desert areas, a nomadic lifestyle was a necessity. Also contrary to what was believed, houses, towns & agriculture did exist in parts of Australia anyway. The area on the Victorian/N.S.W. border where eel farming was practiced is the best known. It is now known that in pre-European times Aboriginals travel to and from Indonesia. As Australia was so rich, & our people could gather more food than needed from the land, they had no need to waste energy on intensive agriculture. The vast variety of foods eaten by tribes in most area of Australia was much larger than eaten by humans in most other places on earth and was probably a reason Aboriginal people appeared so healthy to the early European arrivals. In much of Australia burning was practiced as a way of managing the land, stop devastating bush fires and to control the movement of game (native animals). Also it much be remembered, Australia had no indigenous animals that could be herded or farmed as practiced in most other lands. Dingoes of course were domesticated, but as mentioned these are not a true native animal, but came with some of the early arrivals. This lack of agriculture was probably what "fooled" the early European invaders the most about our people, and let to some horrible consequences to Australia's original inhabitants.

Culture Australia Society and Culture Australia's has diverse culture and lifestyle. Australia's original inhabitants, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, are the custodians of one of the world's oldest continuing cultural traditions. Rest of Australia's people are migrants or descendants of migrants who have arrived in Australia from different countries since Great Britain established the first European settlement at Sydney Cove in 1788. Australia has a population of around 23 million people. 25.6 per cent of the estimated resident population comprised those born overseas. Within the framework of Australia's laws, all Australians have the right to express their culture and beliefs and to participate freely in Australia's national life. Everyone is expected to uphold the principles and shared values that support Australia's way of life. These include:
respect for equal worth, dignity and freedom of the individual freedom of speech and association freedom of religion and a secular government support for parliamentary democracy and the rule of law equality under the law equality of men and women equality of opportunity peacefulness a spirit of egalitarianism that embraces tolerance, mutual respect, and compassion for

those in need. Australia also holds firmly to the belief that no one should be disadvantaged on the basis of their country of birth, cultural heritage, language, gender or religious belief. The unemployment rate is relatively low (in December 2007 it was 4.3 per cent) and the gross per capita income is around $39 000. All people are equal under the law in Australia and all Australians have the right to be respected and treated in a fair manner.

Language All people in Australia are encouraged to learn English, which is the national language and an important unifying element of Australian society. However, languages other than English are also valued. Religious worship Australia is a predominantly Christian country, with around 64 per cent of all Australians identifying as Christians. However, most other major religious faiths are also practised, reflecting Australia's culturally diverse society. Indigenous Australians have their own unique religious traditions and spiritual values. Australia has no official state religion and people are free to practise any religion they choose, as long as they obey the law. Australians are also free not to have a religion. Vibrant arts scene Australia has a vibrant arts scene that reflects both the nation's Indigenous cultural traditions and its rich mosaic of migrant cultures. All forms of the visual and performing arts have strong followings, including film, art, theatre, dance and music. A sporting culture Australians love their sport, both playing it and watching it.Australia is also ranked the top cricketing nation in the world. Australia has often achieved impressive results at the elite level Sports Tournaments. Australia has one of the most diverse cuisines in the world, thanks to Asian and European migrant influences. Australia has no national Cusine. Australia, one of the world's most efficient agricultural nations, produces highquality vegetables, fruit and grains, meat, poultry, seafood, and cheeses and other dairy products. The Australian wine sector is recognised internationally as producing a full range of high-quality wine styles and varietals to match any dish, from full-bodied reds and deep fruity whites to sparkling, dessert and fortified wines. Obeying the law. Clothing The types of clothing that people wear reflect the diversity in Australian society and the variations in climate. There are no laws or rules on clothing, but Australians are expected to wear certain clothing in work situations most workplaces have dress standards.