The Golden Cord (1996), directed by Hilary Furlong
Batik in Focus
Agus Ismoyo pictured in The Golden Cord, 1996, courtesy Ronin Films.
Free, bookings essential
Classification: Classified G
Film duration: 55 minutes
Directed by Hilary Furlong, The Golden Cord tells the story of 10 women artists from Urapuntja/Utopia, Central Australia, who travel to the Brahma Tirta Sari batik studio in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Their hosts, Javanese-born Agus Ismoyo and US-born Nia Fliam, share new batik techniques with their guests in preparation for a major upcoming exhibition. Following the Yogyakarta workshop, Ismoyo and Nia visit the artists in Urapuntja/Utopia, where the women show them their Country and the inspiration behind their art.
Agus Ismoyo and Nia Fliam from Brahma Tirta Sari Artist Studio will provide a brief introduction to the film.
This film screening is part of a series of public programs focused on batik in the practice of senior Anmatyerr artist Emily Kam Kngwarray. Currently the focus of an extensive survey exhibition at the National Gallery of Australia, Emily Kam Kngwarray is one of the world’s most significant contemporary painters to emerge in the twentieth century. The exhibition brings together the most important works of Emily Kam Kngwarray’s oeuvre, from early vibrant batik textiles to later monumental paintings on canvas.
The exhibition, Emily Kam Kngwarray, is on display from 2 December until 28 April 2024. Book tickets here.
Art Meets Film is a free program of film screenings presented in partnership by the National Gallery of Australia and the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia.
