NAIDOC celebrations earlier this month featured a special day at Woodridge, geared to create conversation and awareness with non-Indigenous participants about the rich history and cultureof the lands we live and work on.
Workways at Kingston hosted around 40 people, including Logan elders Uncle Joe Kirk, Aunty Freda Mitchell, Aunty June Anderson, Aunty Rhonda Reid, and Uncle Joe’s grandson Brayden Kirk.
Each of them provided an overview of their mob’s history and lives so all in attendance could gain greater insights into what it’s like to be indigenous in Australia.
The day consisted of yarning with the elders, as well as music, paintings and totems being on display.
The seven wooden painted yarning poles were sourced from Aunty Freda Mitchell who helped design them in 2014 alongside community elder Uncle Noel Summers.
This project in Logan City was set up as a local project incubator for Logan artists, to encourage yarning, information sharing, collective problem solving and to promote a sense of a community.
Canvas wall mural paintings were designed by Aunty June Anderson and will be displayed in Workways offices in Woodridge and Browns Plains.
The paintings hold a number of meanings, one of these is that they represent a map of a person’s life and that they’ll eventually find their way home.
“Being able to bring everyone together created stronger connections in the community and allowed attendees to celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples,” a Workways representative said.
