Indigenous curators off to Biennale

It's Viva Italia for two First Nations curators who have been selected from the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia to participate in this year's 57th Venice Biennale.

Clothilde Bullen and Emily McDaniel were chosen as part of the Australia Council for the Arts' Professional Development Program for First Nations Curators, it was announced on Thursday.

Adding to the excitement, for the first time, the Australian pavilion in the Venice Giardini will be represented solely by an Aboriginal artist.

Tracey Moffatt will represent the nation with My Horizon, MCA director Elizabeth Ann Macgregor said.

For Ms McDaniel, the MCA's acting curator Aboriginal & Torres Strait Island programs, it will be her first trip to Europe.

"I am honoured to share this experience alongside so many accomplished First Nations curators that I have admired for many years," she said.

Ms Bullen, who originates from Perth's Wardandi people and is the MCA's curator for Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander collections & exhibitions, said it was a privilege to be able to show leadership in the indigenous visual arts area.

Both curators will receive mentoring and professional development as well as international networking opportunities and the chance to promote contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art, as part of the Italian experience.

The Venice Biennale, curated this year by renowned French visionary Christine Mace, runs from May 13 to November 26, and is titled Viva Arte Viva.