Home Participants 25th Biennale of Sydney (2026) Allara Briggs
Allara Briggs
Allara Briggs
Allara is a staunch Yorta Yorta artist – songwoman, bassist, producer and sound-designer. Living on Wurundjeri, Woi-Wurrung Country for almost 15 years, her motivation is driven by a hope of healing and self-determination. Her fire within, is ignited by the resilience of yenbana-l and woka-n mulana. Allara’s unrelenting commitment to collapse colonial structures, inspires her work in all fields, and is based in growing native knowledge resurgence, through wholehearted blak joy… AND crop dusting seeds of resistance, in every corner of every lawn. F**K the colony.
galnya dhadjowa (Beautiful Sunshine)
Presented by Allara
Staunch Yorta Yorta artist Allara presents galnya dhadjowa, a reflective performance and creative offering that traces her decade-long journey of identity, cultural reclamation, and intergenerational healing on Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country, Naarm.
Rooted in a documentary project first initiated in 2015 titled beautiful sunshine, the performance is a meta reflection, a deeper, layered storytelling experience drawing from Allara’s search for truth, connection and belonging.
The name galnya dhadjowa, the Yorta Yorta translation of Beautiful Sunshine, was inspired by the meaning of Allara’s own name. It all began with a spontaneous visit to her maternal Grandfather, Uncle Donny Briggs, in Shepparton, a moment that changed everything. There, she first encountered the brutal headline “Yorta Yorta told they don’t exist”, an article about the Yorta Yorta Native Title struggle.
This sliding door moment sent Allara on a path guided by the footsteps of her old people. Her already deep desire to understand her mob’s history, kinship, and cultural identity became the bedrock of a film that was never finished… until now, but, in another form.
At its heart, this work is grounded in the unwavering strength of her Mum, her matriarch, Sue Briggs. Hers is a story of selflessness, resilience, and love — a testament to the power of intergenerational healing and the enduring legacy of incredible Blak Women.
That’s what this show is really about.