Kwop Ben

We’re celebrating the borderless creative thinking of Aboriginal and First Nations artists with a new initiative. Discover transformative, immersive experiences from artists who are facilitating the most important conversations of our time. 

Boorloo Contemporary is a commissioning and development stream fostering genre-defying, cutting-edge art works that connect with tradition and anticipate the future.  

At the heart of the Boorloo Contemporary program is the annual activation of East Perth Power Station with monumental digital projections, responding to the rich history of the site or its surrounds. This year landscape paintings of the area around the site by Tjyllyungoo Lance Chadd are brought to life on the building’s façade. 

East Perth Power Station will also host a playful and provocative series of pennant flags made  especially for Boorloo by Kait James. While at PS Art Space a landmark solo exhibition from major Yinjibarndi talent Melissa Sandy transforms profound loss into profound healing.  

At Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts, Boorloo Contemporary supports Bardi artist Darryl Sibosado’s contribution to Awakening Histories, an exhibition exploring little known but longstanding connections between the Kimberley and South East Asia.  

Tyrown Waigana – Digital Artist

Tyrown is a multidisciplinary artist and designer with cultural ties to the Wardandi Noongar people of the South West, the Yawuru people of the Kimberley region and the Ait Koedhal clan from Saibai Island in the Torres Strait. Following the coast, his heritage stretches across almost half of Australia and is deeply rooted in connections to the ocean.

Born and raised in Fremantle, Tyrown’s passion for art was nurtured by his family and environment. Inspired by creative family members, animated television shows and a curiosity about the world, he developed a strong interest in visual storytelling from a young age. This
passion led him to Curtin University, where he completed a Bachelor of Arts.

Tyrown’s practice explores the 'everyday myth' – those strange or humorous moments in daily life that reveal deeper truths. His work also investigates miscommunication, gaps in understanding and the rhetoric surrounding Indigenous identity, often using satire and humour to
engage audiences and challenge expectations.

As a multidisciplinary artist, Tyrown works across graphic design, illustration, painting, sculpture and animation. This versatility allows him to experiment with both form and concept, creating bold and original works that are technically refined and conceptually layered. He enjoys pushing creative boundaries and taking on complex projects that enable him to grow as an artist.

Tyrown believes creativity is limitless – and his body of work is a vibrant, evolving proof of that idea.


Herbie Bropho – Cultural Advisor

Herbie is a Senior Whadjuk Noongar and Ballardong man and a prominent Aboriginal activist advocating for the rights of his people and progress in Aboriginal affairs. He is known for his leadership in land rights, cultural sovereignty and the protection of sacred sites.

Herbie is a member of the Wadjemup Project Steering Group and a key leader in the Aboriginal-led initiative to reconcile the history of Aboriginal imprisonment on Wadjemup.

Dr Richard Walley OAM – Cultural Advisor

Richard is a Noongar man and one of Australia’s leading Aboriginal performers, musicians and writers. Richard is a working director of his family-owned business, Aboriginal Productions and Promotions, which delivers cultural awareness and learning programs and has been in operation for over 25 years. Richard is a committed leader in the promotion of Noongar culture, and has extensive experience working alongside Australian and international organisations as a cultural consultant and presenter. Richard lectures on Aboriginal culture at UWA and is a regular host and participant at significant public and cultural events in Perth and the South West. In 1978, Richard formed the Middar Aboriginal Theatre which has since taken Noongar culture to 32 countries. It is estimated more than 10 million people have experienced a live performance from Middar, contributing to the company’s win of the 1988 Gold Swan Tourism Award. In 2015, Richard was named a State Living Treasure from the Western Australia Department of Culture and the Arts for his lifetime contribution to arts and culture.