The IMA Courtyard Commission is an ongoing commissioning platform engaging with Australian and international artists to produce dynamic public artwork. For this first commission, Vernon Ah Kee builds on his powerful use of language with the new work, corpse table negotiation, 2016.

The outdoor work confronts the unequal dynamic at the heart of any dialogue between Aboriginal people and the state: there is an implicit rule that nobody should talk about the dead bodies (massacres, detention, deaths in custody, etc.); yet for Aboriginal people, the spectre of history must be addressed before proceeding with any negotiations. And at any negotiating table set up by the government, participants are strategically selected in advance to ensure that the conversation can be controlled and the outcomes predicted. Despite this management, corpse table negotiation is a potent reminder that the bodies are always under the table, staring upward.