The National Indigenous Arts Advocacy Association has created the new label as a guarantee of the authenticity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander products. Now that indigenous cultural products annually achieve multi-million dollar sales, it has become a matter of urgency to stop the flow of inauthentic work into the market place. The National Indigenous Arts Advocacy Association, the peak advocacy body in Australia, developed the Label with the backing of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission and the Australia Council for the Arts. The Label of Authenticity, which is being officially unveiled in late October 1999, will be attached to items such as baskets, coolamons, printed fabric, jewellery, pottery, CDs T-shirts, publications, sculptures and carvings, paintings, headbands, musical instruments, boomerangs, place mats and tea towels. However, it will only be applied to products by certified artists and manufacturers and will be legally protected under the Trade Mark Act of 1995.
Consumers generally expect the indigenous items they purchase to be genuine.
The individually numbered Labels will offer this guarantee, with the added advantage of internet access to the Label registry. A simple entering of a label number will show the name of the individual artist, and the type of item the label is approved to be attached to, such as wood carvings or woven baskets. This will help to combat any misuse or imitation of labels and be an added assurance. The registry will list the artists, items approved to carry the label, and place of origin. Artists who are licensed to use the Label of Authenticity will attach the label to works.