Binna Man Quotes

Aboriginal art has many inspiring aspects such as the link that it has to the past of Aboriginal people, kinship the dreaming, land and reconciliation. Charlie Colbung is the artist behind a large beautiful acrylic painting exhibited in the Plantagenet community resource centre, in Mount Barker Western Australia. Colbung’s painting is called ‘Past to Present’ and represents the journey to reconciliation of both Indigenous and non-Indigenous people. Full of depth, texture, colour and numerous artistic elements to entice audiences to engage and analyse his lovely art work as well as critically reflect on the art and the meaning behind the painting. Charlie Colbungs painting Past to Present is a beautiful example of Aboriginal art work.

Contemporary Indigenous Art in Australia is a fundamental core into the exploration into contemporary visual culture, and that of historical reflection and tradition. Art and decoration acts as an integral part of the traditional indigenous lifestyle1, such tradition repressed through the centuries of destructive oppression, that continued through to the late 20th century, reinforced by an education system and society dominated by a history built on the belief in Australia as terra nullius. Such narratives and visual representations of history present the colonisers as powerful figures of exploration, and colonisation- the bearers of learning and civilisation in a land of ‘primitive’, failing to acknowledge the sovereign rights of Australia’s Indigenous people.

Personification is used throughout the book to highlight the deep connection Aboriginal people have with nature, making their relationship more tangible for readers to understand and

An example of this “revolutionary conceptualism” (Ferell, 2012) is observed in Figure 2, a piece of artwork called “The Elders of the Tribe”, by Elizabeth Durack (1953). Overall, the image depicts the elders of a Warlpiri kinship group sitting around a distinctive ground pattern, representing their ancestral origin in Central Australia (Durack, 2015). The wavy and distinctive insignia convey the elders being “swept away by the wind” (Durack, 2015), in addition to the concentric circles, connoting to various spiritual events that occurred at various campsites within the Warlpiri community. Moreover, Durack (2015) further explains that the artwork represented a “conversion from red and white ochre to acrylic medium”, supporting the artistic transition from traditional Aboriginal ground art to Western-inspired acrylic paintings.

Australia’s Aboriginal Peoples form the longest living culture in the world, they have experienced massive conflicts and suffered many losses. Tjukurpa Kunpa, means ‘Strong Law & Culture,’ and forms part of a collection of paintings that concentrate on political and cultural issues that have resulted from colonisation. The painting outlines the shape of Australia and is decorated with symbols and writings that hold significant meaning to Aboriginal cultures.

The indigenous Warlpiri people of Central Australia exhibit an array of cultural beliefs that structure their lives in a way that hugely distinguishes them from modern society, granting the group a meaningful perspective into the world around them. Jackson explores the existential notion of being at home in the world, and what it signifies in a nomadic context. He focuses on cultural relationships of people to the material world and environment, as well as Warlpiri spiritual belief systems. This essay will explore the effects of nomadic culture on the Warlpiri, concentrating on how the nomadic sense of home influences their lives both physically and intellectually through short-term resource management and the Warlpiri language. Following, it will analyse the Aboriginal concept of dreaming and of ancestry, in order to express how this spiritual system of belief meaningfully affects Warlpiri spirituality, ritual behaviour, and their connection to the surrounding natural environment. Jackson’s reading will be analysed for this purpose, which follows his experiences in and around the Tanami desert with a group of Warlpiri companions.

Students will create a juxtaposed artwork representing the past of Aboriginal culture and the future according to Paul Keating’s speech. The material used will be ones from the nature such as sticks and leaves to create a depiction of Aboriginal history. The artwork will tell two stories one being the discrimination against Aboriginals and the other being a better future for them. Using earthy colours, natural materials and techniques used by Aboriginals student will create a beautiful artwork explain the Indigenous Australians past and future. • Drama activity-

The Dreaming is communicated through songs, stories and rituals, in which is explains how the “creator ancestors shaped the land and brought it to life” (Gammage, 2011, p. 1419). All of life, from religion, geography, life and more, are explained and connected to the Aboriginal people’s spirituality, land and family through this form of communication. The Dreamtime “shapes the Aboriginal people’s view of the universe and themselves” (Wierzbicka & Goddard, 2015, p. 43). The passing on of the Dreaming stories from one generation to the next was a “most important aspect of education” (Edwards, 1998, p. 83) and is seen as the fundamental reality. Edwards stated that through ritual, humans are able to “enter into a direct relationship with

Dance and music are important characteristics in indigenous life and celebrates historical significance with stories. Reflection of the past is associated with dance in the modern era with groups that keep the traditions alive, like the one in “Dances for a New Generation”. In the Kwakiutl tribe, the Red Cedar dance shares the narrative about the cannibal man and the taming of the spirits within. Additionally, the Comanche men’s traditional dance “emanate[s] different things like stories of battles and hunting through movements” (Lucas, Phil, and Hanay

Over the years, our Australian Indigenous people have been subjected to immense anguish, which was brought to them by the Western Culture. For many of them, reconnecting with their ancestors through their traditional spiritualties is allowing their sufferings to heal. Kate Jones examines the work of Miriam Rose, a well known artist and advocate for the Education of Indigenous Youth who believes it cannot stop there, we must educate our young, and she is constantly striving to empower
Indigenous youth through education, art, culture and opportunity.

The Indigenous Australian imagination perceives the way of the world and all that exists as not the result of a singular force or mind, but, rather, the result of powerful totemic ancestral beings who once roamed the land. This ontological tradition, known as “The Dreaming”, serves as an infinite link between past and present, people and place, and both the natural and spiritual world. “The Dreaming,” then, asserts that all of humanity and nature in its entirety is alive and connected. In his ethnographic account titled, Pintupi Country, Pintupi Self, Fred Myers examines the importance of The Dreaming to Pintupi society and its centrality in the constitution of their lived world. Descriptions of what happened in The Dreaming underlie Pintupi social relationships and constructions of “country.” It is through this mythological construct that the Pintupi Aboriginal people mediate their relationships with the land and negotiate aspects of personhood and identity.

In order to keep the terminology manageable, the term “Ancestral Being” is used here to describe all Aboriginal deities, rather than including the terms “Creation Being” and “Totemic Being”. There are hundreds of Ancestral Beings throughout Australia, recorded by Aborigines in their stories, songs, body paintings and art. This includes recordings in the rock paintings and petroglyphs (rock carvings) dating back thousands of years. Some Aboriginal stories relating to Ancestral Beings were recorded by early Europeans and published as children’s story

Another aspect of their culture that strengthens feelings of community is the abundance of singing and rituals. The songs of the Aboriginals tell the stories of their Ancestor walking across Australia, and each Aboriginal “owns” a certain part of the song, which also acts as their property deeds. Whenever the elders decided to sing the whole song, they send word so that all the Aboriginals of that clan gather together and stand

Aboriginal artwork is a physical depiction of the ancestor sprits, which are connected and linked throughout the artwork. Which is linked back to the begging of time. During the creation period when the ancestor sprits dwelled the land leaving behind their remains and part of themselves behind in forms of rock art, caves implanting themselves in the land and playing a significant role in aboriginal artwork. Mostly all aboriginal art can be connected to scenery with various paintings depicting the substantial relationship between various features within the land. All aboriginal art should be viewed and considered as important and significant because they are basically the representations of relationships which are seen as lessons that impact and guide how the land is perceived and understood today. Whenever an aboriginal painting displays or ever represents particular structures and characteristics of the land its main focus is to be presented in a story like manner. The paintings and artwork symbolizes the continuing link with the country the land and the responsibilities that are tied to it. Paintings are a display that is incredibly important and hold a significant meaning. Paintings are seen as a radical act to display and express to the world that the aboriginal people posses the land and the land posses

Alison Lester’s Ernie Dances to the Didgeridoo is based upon stories from the children of Arnhem Land about their love for their home. Connectedness is established when Lester places Ernie, a white boy, from the city into an aboriginal community and portrays him as the ‘other’ allowing children with aboriginal ethnicity to see themselves as teachers imparting knowledge and taking pride in their culture (Figure 1.3). Providing relatable information to children from different ethnic backgrounds to promote sameness is part of the role for multicultural children’s literature. The ability to serve as a mirror or a window enables “children may see their own lives reflected in a story or may have an opportunity see into others’ lives” (Quintero 379). Ernie Dances to the Didgeridoo follows the six seasons of Arnhem Land with the illustrations presenting activities enjoyed throughout the year as photos Ernie is sending home to his friends describing his adventures.