Artist I AustraliA
The Art Raft project was a response to the needs of the Peoples Blockade, a peaceful protest held in November at the river mouth in Muloobinba/ Newcastle on Awabakal and Worimi country. In its 12th year, the flotilla united 3000 people to blockade the world’s largest coal port for 30 hours, day and night, demanding urgent action to address the climate crisis.
The Art Raft crew – two artists, an architect and a social work student - sought to create a community hub of joy, play and care for the flotilla.
The process of designing and constructing the raft was emergent and grew from our existing networks in Newcastle. Materials were donated and recycled, skills sets were pooled and shared, community groups were involved.
The key outcomes of the Art Raft project were to build human relationships and create stories, key ingredients in sustaining and strengthening our community’s ability to confront climate crisis and work toward a fossil fuel-free future.
Working on Mirrar Country with Marawuddi gallery and Mahbilil festival based in Jabiru, this collaborative project spanned a 3 week period where i worked with local Indigenous artists Abel Naborlhborlh, Graham Rostron, Ayasha Alderson, Nonica Hardy, Selone Djandjomerr, Rosie Munjadi and Ray Munjadi. Together we came up with this design using the colour palette of natural dyes that are used for weaving with pandanus in this region. Looking through these images you can see a forest of animals and symbols from this region. The Namargon (middle left) is lightning man by Selone Namargon, a creation spirit, responsible for lightening storms, he has axes on his knees and elbows that split the clouds to create lightening. Wrapping around the side is the Yawk Yawk by Graham, a female water spirit that are guardians of sacred waterholes. They turn into dragonfly’s at the end of the wet season, which signifies to bininj (aboriginal people) that the wet season has finished.
Mural at the local pool for the Mahbilil festival in Jabiru, collaborating with local Indigenous artists Graham Rostron and Ray Mudjandji. Together we looked at the patterns and colours of the wildlife and plants from the local area. Water lillys, pandanus, crocodiles, barramundi, long neck turtles and rifle fish. Graham Rostron is a local artist that has his own traditinal raak painting art practice, teaches art at the local school and works with Marrawuddi art gallery on a series of screen prints. Young Ray Mudjandji attends the local school, and is involved with the Marrawuddi art gallery where he designs his own screen prints of super heroes that are based on dream time stories.
The Maitland river mural explores the vivid and lively nature that a river brings to an inland town. Patterns are drawn from native botanicals and ferns, birdlife and river movement. This mural invites the viewer to immerse themselves in an active landscape identifying familiar yet abstracted forms from their surroundings.
From the forest to the sea explores the transition from the luscious forests of the Coffs Harbour surrounds down to the vivid landscapes of the Reef. I have incorporated a variety of familiar shapes and forms from Coffs Habours natural environment. The bushland shapes reference the edible and medicinal native foods of the area such as cabbage leaf palm, native ginger, lomandra and bracken fern; and the shapes of the reef reference the local coral and sea life that adorn the marine park of the Coffs Coast.