About UMI
Who Are We?
UMI Arts is the incubator Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander arts and cultural organisation for Far North Queensland, an area that extends north of Cairns to include the Torres Strait Islands, south to Cardwell, west to Camooweal and includes the Gulf and Mt Isa regions.
UMI Arts is a not-for-profit company managed by an all-Indigenous Board of Directors and is based in Cairns Queensland.
UMI Arts was established in 2005 and its mission is to operate an Indigenous organisation that assists Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to participate in the maintenance, preservation and protection of cultural identity.
UMI Arts also operates as the Cairns Indigenous Art Centre in order to provide support for Indigenous artists who live and work in Cairns.
At the broadest level, UMI Arts’ goal is to strengthen Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural practices, including visual arts and crafts, dance, ceremony, story telling and music.
UMI is a Creole word that means ‘You and Me’ – for UMI Arts this is significant as we believe that we need to work together to keep our culture strong.
Our vision
Connected communities strong in arts and culture.
Our purpose
To maintain and strengthen the identity of the Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders in our region through our arts and cultural programs.
Our values
âť– We conduct our business with integrity and respect
âť– We work together with our members and stakeholders
âť– We are committed to creative excellence and capacity building
âť– We believe that arts and culture connect communities to make them stronger.