The 10-day program was designed to increase indigenous leadership in visual arts. 

Ms Lonsdale, the Aboriginal Arts Development Officer at Arts OutWest, went behind the scenes at the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra and toured the Pacific, Asian, International, Australian, Portrait and Photography Galleries with gallery curators. 

She attended workshops  on industry practice such as copyright law, arts marketing, conservation and exhibition design and much more. 

Ms Lonsdale also had career mapping sessions with the Senior Advisor Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art,  Franchesca Cubillo. 

“A lot of things I have learnt at the Wesfarmers Arts Indigenous Leadership Program I have been able to send in  texts to the artists I work with in Mudgee, to share my learning.

“My time here is not all about me, it’s about what I can take back to the mob,” she said. 

Ms Lonsdale returns to Mudgee having forged a new wide-ranging network of arts workers from Yirrkala,Cairns, the Gold Coast, Melbourne, Thursday Island, Fitzroy Crossing, Adelaide and Sydney. 

She said her goal was to see more regional representation in large institutions and festivals. 

 “There is often a place for urban/contemporary artists and for artists working in traditional styles, but we get stuck in the middle. 

“The stories of regional artists are just as valuable as everyone else’s and just because you are a regional artists doesn’t mean that you don’t have traditional knowledge.”

Mr Cubillo said each year he was impressed  by the calibre of participants and the way in which they engage in the diverse  facets of the visual arts industry. 

“Forty-four people from across Australia have now attended the Wesfarmers Arts Indigenous Leadership Program and we are proud to be growing this network of Indigenous art professionals,” he said.