Wilin Centre Cultural Advisors

Joy Wandin Murphy is a Senior Aboriginal Elder of the Wurundjeri People. Together, with her beloved partner, who passed away some time ago, they share seven adult children and ten adored grandchildren.

In her vital role as an Elder and representative of the Wurundjeri tribe Joy has had the privilege of welcoming many people that have come to live or visit on her Father’s traditional country including many international guests; Mr Nelson Mandela - South Africa, President Xanana Gusmao - East Timor, Mr Martin Luther King 111 – South Africa, Mr Mohammed Ali, Ms Susan Sarandon and Ms Naomi Campbell - United States of America, HRH Queen Elizabeth 11, Duke of Edinburgh Prince Phillip, Princess Royal Anne – England, HRH Prince of Wales, The Earl of Essex HRH Prince Edward, Cardinal Martini - Milan, Mrs Mary MacAleese – Ireland, Dott. Alfonso Zardi – Rome, Mary Black – Ireland, Robert Kennedy Jnr – United States of America. and Winston Churchill 111 – England.

Joy has been heavily involved with Aboriginal Australian affairs for over thirty years and has held executive positions across all sectors of Government. Joy delivered the 2005 Review Report to the Victorian Government on their implementation of the recommendations from the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody. 

Joy is an honorary Professor of Swinburne University of Technology, Chair of the Wilin Centre for Indigenous Arts and Cultural Development at the Victorian College of the Arts University of Melbourne, Board member of Fraynework Multimedia (Sisters of Mercy), Co-Patron for Keeping Koori Kids in Catholic Education and Patron for Parliament of World Religions.  Joy is also an Ambassador for BreastScreen Victoria, Australia Day Victoria and an Animis Ambassador for Zoos Victoria.     

Recently Joy retired as a Commissioner of the Equal Opportunity Commission Victoria, Council Trustee of the National Gallery of Victoria, member of the Victoria Police Ethical Standards Committee and member of the Equal Opportunity Tribunal/Anti Discrimination Tribunal.

A storyteller of dreamtime stories featured on the ABC and World Tales on SBS, Joy has a high media profile. Additionally she has been co-producer and co-director of a number of cultural performances and a writer of several published short stories. Joy was commissioned by Philip Glass (USA) for ‘Voices’ and performed the narrative in Melbourne, New York and Jordan.  In 2006 Joy was the creative artist for projects and lyricist for the Opening and Closing songs in the Commonwealth Games held in Melbourne.

Joy operates her own cultural consultancy business “Jarlo Visions”.

Kutcha is a Mutti Mutti man, born in Balranald, New South Wales. He was 'stolen' at 18 months and denied his birthright to grow up with his family, to experience his culture and to live his identity. As a teenager he was reunited with his mother and family; his journey began to retrieve his identity and reclaim what was denied him, his family and his community.

Kutcha has worked and engaged in the Victorian Aboriginal community at various organizations spanning 20 years now. Some of the places he has worked include Aboriginal Community Elders Services (ACES), Victorian Aboriginal Health Service, Fitzroy Stars Youth Club Gymnasium and the Koorie Open Door Education School at Glenroy. With a strong connection to culture, Kutcha realised his passion for working with Koori youth. The key issue that motivates his work is to empower youth with a strong sense of self worth, self-expression, self-belief and self-determination.

Kutcha has developed his community work through education, health, art, culture and politics. Music became an integral medium for Kutcha to communicate Indigenous stories and his own songline. For many years he was the lead singer in Blackfire and has since formed the Kutcha Edwards Band. His music has taken him abroad to China, Mexico and Japan. His motivation is simple...to heal the spirit, strengthen community and family. What Kutcha shares with his people is a connection and a belonging. It is his gift that in his own journey of healing he is able to help heal others.

Kutcha has been involved with the Wilin Centre for Indigenous Arts & Cultural Development, Victorian College of the Arts as a cultural advisor, educator and musician for over five years.

Ron is a descendent of the Wamba Wamba tribe (Swan Hill, Victoria) and the Tatiara tribe (Bordertown, South Australia).  His totems are wiran, the red tail black cockatoo on his father’s side and richierook, the willy wagtail on his mother’s side. 

Growing up in red gum forest country in the traditional lands of the Muthi Muthi people, Balranald NSW, Ron was lucky to grow up with his culture, with his mother, father and five sisters at a time when many Indigenous children were being removed from their family as part of the Stolen Generations policy. 

For the past 15 years Ron has worked for Indigenous communities in a variety of roles, always pressing for social justice, and trying to educate the wider non- Indigenous community.  He was Aboriginal Advisor to Victoria Police for five years until 2000, and worked for the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service between 1992-95 as a client service officer,

Ron is a highly successful Didgeridoo (Yidaki) musician and regularly performs as part of the duo Kinja, with partner Sarah James (fiddle player and vocalist).  Kinja translates in the Wamba Wamba language as “my home”.

 “I have had the opportunity to do two orchestral pieces – a Philip Glass piece and a Peter Sculthorpe piece – in the Melbourne Town Hall,” then in New York and in Jordon.  He once played for Queen Elizabeth II and world boxing champion, Muhammad Ali.

As an artist, Ron is widely regarded as a wood sculptor specialising in sculpting snakes, coolamons and shields, and as a maker of fine mallee didgeridoos and returning boomerangs made from redgum tree roots the way his grandfather, John Jack Murray taught him.
Following in the footsteps of his ancestors, Ron incorporates traditional Victorian Aboriginal line etching in his work.

As well as creating his own artwork, Ron passes on his knowledge to Indigenous young people by teaching wood sculpture as part of the ‘cultural healing’ program he delivers at Melbourne and Malmsbury Youth Justice Centres.

Melbourne International Arts Festival, Artistic Director 2005, 2006, 2007 & 2008
Newly appointed Head VCA Performing Arts, Victorian College of the Arts, University of Melbourne.

As an artist, curator and artistic director, Kristy Edmunds has been a leading advocate for furthering innovative and groundbreaking contemporary art. She currently serves as Artistic Director (AD) of the Melbourne International Arts Festival, where she is the first AD in the Festival's 23-year history to serve a four-year term (2005 - 2008). Following her final festival, she will take up the position of Head of Performing Arts at the Victorian College of the Arts (VCA) and will continue to serve as an Artistic Advisor to several organisations internationally.

Originally from the United States, Edmunds founded PICA, the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art, in 1995 where she served as Artistic Director for ten years and still serves as an Advisor. In 2003, Edmunds launched the TBA (Time-Based Art) Festival at PICA; now one of the most impacting festivals within the US.

Edmunds has served on numerous boards and advisory boards both in the United States and Australia. These currently include, the Advisory boards for the State of Design, the Centre for Art and Ideas as well as the Wilin Centre for Indigenous Arts and Cultural Development, both at the VCA. She has served as a panellist on numerous occasions; including the prestigious Berkshire Conference in Massachusetts and has previously served on the boards' of the Northwest Business Committee for the Arts, the National Performance Network, National Dance Project (all in the US) and Lucy Guerin Dance Company.

In 1999 she served on an Executive Task Force for developing a Cultural Policy for the State of Oregon, which was eventually adopted and passed by the Legislature in 2001 leading to the Cultural Trust. In 2003 she assisted in the creation of the "Memphis Manifesto" a landmark document, spear-headed by Richard Florida, outlining new trends and values for the creative economy that has since been adopted by city governments internationally as a benchmark for imagining city rejuvenation strategies.

The Wilin Centre has six staff: the Head of the Wilin Centre, a Student Programs Officer, an Indigenous Academic, an Events & Communications Officer, an Administrative Assistant, and a Personal Assistant. To access the Wilin Centre, please drop in to Building G2 or contact: