Research Methodology

Indigenous-led Practice-based Research

My research brings together Indigenous methodologies, creative practice, and collaborative engagement to explore new approaches to curatorial practice and storytelling. It is grounded in relationship, lived experience, and working alongside artists and communities in ways that are respectful, ethical, and responsive.

Rather than separating research from practice, this work understands knowledge as something that is created through doing, sharing, and being in relationship with others and with Country.

Indigenous Methodologies

Indigenous ways of knowing and sharing knowledge are central to this research. These approaches guide both the process and the outcomes, ensuring that storytelling remains grounded in community, culture, and lived experience.

Storytelling
Storytelling is at the heart of the research. It is not only what is shared, but how knowledge is carried, understood, and experienced. Stories emerge through relationships—with people, place, and practice—and are expressed through both creative and conversational forms.

Yarning & Sharing Circles
Yarning circles create space for open, respectful dialogue. They allow participants to share stories, experiences, and knowledge in ways that feel natural and relational, rather than structured or formal. These conversations inform both the creative process and the curatorial direction of the work.

Indigenous Autoethnography
My own lived experience is part of this research. Through reflective storytelling, I position myself within the process—acknowledging my role, relationships, and responsibilities. This approach allows for a deeper understanding of how knowledge is shaped through experience and connection.

Practice-Led Research

This research is practice-led, meaning that creative work is not separate from research—it is a way of generating knowledge.

Through artmaking, curating, and designing exhibitions, ideas are explored, tested, and refined. The process of making becomes a form of inquiry, where insights emerge through experimentation, collaboration, and reflection.

The exhibitions themselves are key research outcomes—spaces where ideas about storytelling, immersion, and curatorial practice are brought to life and experienced by audiences.

Community Engagement

Community engagement is fundamental to this work. Artists and community members are not participants in the research—they are collaborators and knowledge holders.

Engagement takes place through:

On-Country visits
Yarning and sharing circles
Collaborative artmaking
Exhibition experiences

These interactions are guided by trust, reciprocity, and cultural protocols. Community voices lead the direction of the work, ensuring that stories are shared in ways that are respectful, authentic, and grounded in lived knowledge.

Data Collection

Data in this research is gathered through a combination of storytelling, creative practice, and reflection.

Rather than relying solely on traditional methods, this work values multiple forms of knowledge, including:

Oral storytelling and conversations recorded through yarning and on-Country exchanges
Creative outputs such as artworks and exhibitions, which hold and express knowledge
Reflective writing based on my own experiences within the process
Participant feedback, including surveys and visitor responses to exhibitions

Together, these forms of data provide a richer, more holistic understanding of how stories are shared, experienced, and understood within immersive and collaborative contexts.

This approach to research recognises that knowledge is not fixed—it is relational, evolving, and shaped through connection. By bringing together Indigenous methodologies, creative practice, and community collaboration, this work seeks to create meaningful, respectful ways of sharing and experiencing story.

Birrala Nyina - Indigenous Storytelling Method

Indigenous-led Intercultural Exchange

Stories, Process & Fieldwork

This space holds the unfolding of the work.

It is where stories are shared in their becoming, through moments on Country, conversations with artists and community, and the processes of making and thinking that shape the research. It is not a finished narrative, but a living archive of connection, reflection, and creative exchange.

Here, I document the journey as it happens, holding space for story, process, and the relationships that guide the work.

On-Country Reflections

Time spent on Country is central to this research. It is where stories live, where knowledge is held, and where connections deepen.

These reflections capture moments of being on river and forest—walking, listening, observing, and learning. They are grounded in presence and experience, offering insight into how place shapes both storytelling and creative practice.

Artist Conversations

This work is built through dialogue.

Through conversations with collaborating artists and community members, stories, ideas, and perspectives are shared in ways that are informal, relational, and grounded in trust. These exchanges offer glimpses into the thinking, experiences, and cultural knowledge that shape the project.

Process Documentation

Making is a form of thinking.

This section shares the evolving creative process—sketches, experiments, material explorations, and works in progress. It reveals how ideas take shape over time, and how collaboration, place, and story inform the development of artworks and exhibitions.

Images, Sketches & Sound

Not all stories are told through words.

Here, process is captured through visual and sensory fragments—images, drawings, video, and sound. These elements offer another layer of storytelling, inviting you into the textures, rhythms, and atmospheres of the work as it unfolds.

An Ongoing Space

This page will continue to grow and shift over time.

It is a place to return to—a space of process rather than outcome. Through these shared moments, the research remains open, evolving, and connected to the people and places that shape it.