On design elements

The stars: Represents meeting under one sky. Everybody coming together and we share our beautiful land and everyone coming together is really important.

The centre: This represents coming together, sharing, bringing of different elements like food, knowledge, different experiences and learning from one another as we gather around the centre.

Lower design elements: Explains our different journeys and different pathways through life. Everybody has a different journey, everybody can take different twists and turns and learn from one another, but it is going down to our core roots and our core values which is really important.

The bands going across the middle: They are waves of emotions but also waves of support that we wrap around one another to support each other in our journey so it is really important that we have that support from friends, family, and community and we are there one another to bring each other through.

About the artist

I currently live in Geelong, I have lived and grown up on Wadawurrung Country land my whole life except for moving away for a little while before coming back.

I am a mother of three and a proud Awabakal woman from Newcastle, New South Wales.

For me, painting as an Aboriginal artist is a way of telling stories, we learn them, we grow them and share them with one another, I have always been artistic, but through COVID period it sparked an interest and I really got enthusiastic in redeveloping myself and finding out who I am. It is exciting to be back on the painting and back developing and being able to share people’s stories through my painting.

When I saw it on the internet it was exciting and nerve-racking. I never thought that I would ever be accepted to be the artist so when I got the call, I sat down for a couple weeks and did the painting. I wanted to bring it back to basics, I paint by hand, it’s a different skill in itself and to be able to put paint to canvas and develop it into the guernsey is amazing.

When i got the call, it was overwhelming and still surreal, just excited to be able to share a little bit about my story and our Aboriginal culture to Australia.

I am a big believer on supporting one another, a big believer in reflective practice when we all come together, share knowledge and support one another in different ways.

Unity and coming together, I come from a big family so for me bringing everybody back together to share, to grow and to learn. In our Aboriginal culture, kinship is massive. Within kin means not just our family but our friends, our aunts, uncle, and grandparents and that is part of how we learn, grow and support each other. 

Being a part of the Djlang program, going out and supporting the kids to do a bit of the artwork has been good as well. Having some of the community kids become part of the process with art and AFL and how that blends.

“It is going to be quite emotional, it will be special sharing it with my family because we have the opportunity for everyone to come together with my kids and some of my closest friends and family.

“To be able to see and contribute to the Cats and the guernsey is quite overwhelming and i am so grateful to have this opportunity and share our culture to the world.”