Painting by Mrs Eileen Brown of women travelling, then sitting together and talking
| Our first idea for the residency project had been to make an online
‘virtual campfire’, an illustrated hypertextual work for the
internet, weaving personal narratives of the Kungkas with Tjukurpa (Dreamtime)
stories drawn from their specific knowledge systems. We conceived a structural
form of the virtual campfire as being a ring of concentric circles, each
of which would unfold specific stories from discrete moments in space
and time. More circles would be added to the structure as women from around
the world joined the campfire to upload their own histories and perspectives,
creating resonances through different cultural views and contemporary
global concerns.
Big learning is involved here. Aboriginal culture is about community ownership of and responsibility for stories, and is intrinsically related to caring for country. Of caring about the generations to come in a profound way, and the burdens that responsibility entails now that so many traditional owners have been systematically disenfranchised from the land. |
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