Two nominations for Victorian Australian of the Year from Maribyrnong
Published on 28 October 2022
Two residents of Maribyrnong are among nominees for the Australian of the Year Awards for Victoria.
Maree Clarke, a multi-disciplinary artist and curator from Yarraville is in the running for Victoria Australian of the Year Award.
A Yora Yora / Wamba Wamba / Mutti Mutti / Boonwurrung woman, she is a pivotal figure in the reclamation of south-east Australian Aboriginal art and cultural practices and has a passion for reviving and sharing elements of Aboriginal culture that were lost – or lying dormant – as a consequence of colonisation.
Maree’s first major retrospective ‘Ancestral Memories’ at the Ian Potter Centre in June 2021 was the first solo show by a living Victorian Aboriginal artist at the National Gallery of Victoria.
Anti-racism campaigner and co-founder of Endeavour Youth Australia, Mohamed Semra of Maidstone, is in the running for the Victoria Young Australian of the Year Award.
A social activist, UN peace ambassador, and proud Maribyrnong resident who migrated from Sudan as a child, he has lived in the West for 16 years. He was the recipient of Maribyrnong City Council’s 2021 Youth Leadership Award.
His goal is to help create a community that every single person can be proud to call home.
The pair are among 130 people being recognised across all states and territories.
The four recipients of the four categories from Victoria will be announced on the evening of Tuesday 8 November at Victoria Government House in Melbourne. They will then join the other state and territory recipients as national finalists for the national awards announcement on 25 January 2023 in Canberra.
Quote from Mayor, Cr Anthony Tran
To be among just 16 selected from such a large pool of amazing talent is an incredible achievement. We could not be more proud to recognise them as residents of our City. I am sure we will all be rooting for them on the night.
Maribyrnong News
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