The following organisations represent, or include, a number of Indigenous art cooperatives:
Aboriginal Art Association of Australia The Aboriginal Art Association of Australia (AAAA), which advocates for all industry participants, including artists, galleries, and
dealers, whether independent or affiliated to an art centre, was founded in
Alice Springs (Mparntwe) in November 1998 and incorporated in January 1999, with over 60 financial member organisations during its first year. The Association continues to lobby and inform governments on behalf of its members on a range of matters, including the future direction and development of the arts (particularly Indigenous);
codes of conduct, and resale
royalties. Art curator and dealer
Adam Knight was formerly the vice president of the AAAA. He took over as president of the organisation in 2018.
Arnhem, Northern and Kimberley Artists The Arnhem, Northern and Kimberley Artists, Aboriginal Corporation (ANKA) is the peak body for Aboriginal artists and Aboriginal-owned community art centres across around a million square kilometres in the
Top End of the
Northern Territory and
Western Australia. It is a not-for-profit
Aboriginal Corporation. The head office of ANKA is in Darwin.
Desart Desart was founded in 1992 as a split from ANCAAA, to focus on Central Desert artists, it has 30 member centres. In 2022, Desart took on management responsibilities, being fully Aboriginal-owned for the first time in that year. In April 2022 Philip Watkins, CEO of Desart, was appointed for a three year term to the board of the
Australia Council, the chief arts funding body of the federal government. In September 2024 he was appointed co-chair, with
Rachael Maza, of
First Nations Arts, a newly-established division of the Australia Council focused on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander arts, for a term of four years. The functions of Desart include advocacy for the art centres, and delivering "programs that build strong business practice, improve infrastructure, support governance, and promote Aboriginal art and culture". The 32nd edition of Desert Mob in 2023 included artwork from 35 art centres, curated by
Hetti Kemarr Perkins and Aspen Nampin Beattie. There were also short films from
Tjanpi Desert Weavers, and fashion shows. ==Indigenous art movements and cooperatives==