Artist and designer Francoise Lane has been announced as the new artistic director at The Cairns Indigenous Art Fair (CIAF) following the departure of Janina Harding at the completion of last month’s event.
Lane has been involved with CIAF since 2013, including as an artist exhibitor and curator of exhibitions ‘Where’s Your Permit?’ (2021) and ‘CIAF Fashion Story’ (2022).
CIAF Chair Tom Mosby said the appointment comes after a “thorough nationwide search” and represented a defining moment in the organisation’s 13-year history.
“Artistically, Francoise is a formidable talent whose cultural sensibilities and experience from a commercial context, along with vision and ambition, make her ideally suited to the strategic demands of the role. We are excited for the future and extend a warm welcome to Francoise,” Mosby said.
“The CIAF Board is pleased to announce one of Far North Queensland’s most talented artists and cultural leaders as its new Artistic Director.”
Francoise Lane is a Torres Strait Islander woman whose maternal family are from Hammond Island and identifies as both Meriam and Kaurareg.
Inspired by her family and her Far North Queensland home of Kerriri (Hammond Island), Lane is a multi-disciplinary creative whose practise spans textile design, visual and surface pattern art, and sculpture.
Added to this, Lane and her husband Andrew established Indij Design in 2011, a 100 per cent Indigenous owned, award-winning architectural and design company.
Reflecting upon her new role, Lane said that over the last two years she had worked closely with her now-predecessor Janina to curate and launch two exhibitions.
“During this time, I have seen how well the CIAF team works together and am delighted to be leading such a professional creative team,” Lane said.
“It is an honour to be part of an Indigenous led organisation with Board Chair Tom Mosby and General Manager Darrell Harris.
“We are in times of great opportunity with Indigenous creatives highlighting the diversity of cross disciplinary arts practice among their contemporary, fellow First Nation’s creatives.
“The intersection of design and art is an exciting one and it will be wonderful to explore what this could add to CIAF.”
After disruptions from the Covid pandemic, the CIAF returned with record art sales in July 2022, exceeding $1 million for the first time, with more than 60,000 visitors attending across the five-day program.
Showcasing independent artists, galleries, art centres and market stalls, CIAF’s Masters of Country themed Art Fair and Art Market was a major contributor to its art sales exceeding the one-million-dollar mark for the first time, with a combined figure of $1,015,029 surpassing the previous record of $924,000 set in 2019.
CIAF GM Darrell Harris said that Queensland’s Indigenous artists and art centres rely on strong commercial outcomes for the industry’s survival and future sustainability.
“For artists and communities situated in the remote Cape York and Torres Strait Islands region CIAF is a significant event on the annual calendar that people look forward to and work towards," Harris said.
“And while CIAF means different things to different people, it is the way it brings everyone together to celebrate culture and identity that makes us feel good and proud of what we do."