Representing Country in the Creative Postcolonial City

Abstract

This article contributes to theories of the postcolonial city. The town of Alice Springs/Mparntwe is situated in the middle of Australia. Its shift from colonial control center to postcolonial city involves four interrelated processes: land rights negotiations, residential segregation, the use and regulation of public space, and the development of a cultural-creative economy based on “Aboriginal” art. Continuances and ruptures of the postcolonial city are highlighted by exploring the paradox of cultural prominence and economic importance of Aboriginal art with the continuing residential marginalization of many Aboriginal inhabitants. The city resonates with the tensions between the postcolonialism of new national imaginaries and the continuing colonialism expressed and embodied in the commodification of “Aboriginal” art.