Human Rights Art Award and Exhibition
Rights On Show is an annual community art award and exhibition with a human rights theme, hosted by Darwin Community Legal Service.

First staged in 1994, Rights On Show ‘s purpose is to promote social justice and human rights. The exhibition provides a forum for artists from across the Northern Territory to exhibit work with a human rights focus.

Art has an important function in our society as a vehicle for social change and an expression of the collective conscience. Art allows social ideas to be challenged and discussed and highlights the right to freedom of expression.

Each year the exhibition is linked to an international human rights theme.  While artists are not required to produce work on this theme, it provides an opportunity for DCLS to focus on a particular area of Human Rights in our promotion and education.

Rights on Show 2011
The 17th annual Human Rights Art Award and Exhibition
The theme for 2011 was Housing and Homelessness. The Northern Territory has the highest rate of homelessness in Australia with a rate of 272 per 10,000 people, which is more than five times the national figure. In many NT communities, the available housing is inadequate and overcrowded.

Access to safe and secure housing is one of the most fundamental of human rights, and is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: Article 25 (1):

• Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.

Being homeless restricts a person’s ability to enjoy basic rights and freedoms. This fact has important consequences for the way that our society perceives and treats homeless people.

Since human rights belong to everyone, it is in the interests of the Australian community as a whole to ensure that the rights of all people are respected and protected.

2011 Human Rights Art Award and Exhibition

Opening and Awards presentation was held on Thursday 8 December 2011 at the Supreme Court Foyer, Darwin.

Homelessness is where the art can be...    Chips Mackinolty opening speech

2011 Rights on Show Winners

Rights on Show Award                          My Dream Boat   -  Javad Javadi

Human Rights Award                                  Straw House - Louisa Cowie

Judges Comendation Award 1   Cardboard Mans Story - Georgina Glen & Levin Diatschenco

For more information contact info@dcls.org.au or call 08 8982 1111.