Bankstown Biennale returns for a 3rd edition with Same Same/Different, helmed by a First Nations led curatorium with Coby Edgar and Jason Wing, joined by Bankstown Arts Centre Director Rachael Kiang. Pivoting from its previous environmental focus, the latest iteration of Bankstown Arts Centre’s contemporary art biennial proposes equitable multiculturalism – enabling cultural connections that resist universalism.

The exhibition title Same Same/Different draws from a common phrase used at the Top End of Australia by Asian and First Nations people alike describing similarities whilst acknowledging differences. Same Same/Different underscores meaningful connections without erasing the distinct qualities of individual experiences. Instead of othering through assimilation or rejection, the phrase places an emphasis on common ground. The premise of respectful co-existence is underpinned by First Nations' worldviews of interconnectedness and its paradigm of ontology, axiology and epistemology as antidote to contemporary philosophical differences.

Programmed for Sydney Festival, a spotlight week of Bankstown Biennale events and activations can be experienced during 14-19 January.