Sky fireballs and a shark in the stars: Indigenous art and astronomy
Meriam elder Uncle Segar Passi shares his knowledge of weather, wildlife, sea, land and sky and how they influence his artwork, now featured on a new commemorative coin
By Associate Professor Duane Hamacher, University of Melbourne
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At his community-built workshop on Mer island (Murray Island) in the eastern Torres Strait, Uncle Segar Passi, explains how he watches the position of the setting Sun from his front patio each night, noting its location and relating that to the time of year and changes in seasonal cycles.
19 February 2021
Australia’s first major survey of contemporary Indigenous textiles and fashion
Bendigo Art Gallery’s spectacular exhibition of contemporary Indigenous fashion will open at the National Museum of Australia in Canberra on 19 February 2021 as part of a national tour.
Featuring the work of Indigenous artists and designers from the inner city to remote desert art centres, Piinpi: Contemporary Indigenous Fashion celebrates Australia’s leading First Nations creatives.
The exhibition comes as part of a long-standing collaboration between the Alastair Swayn Foundation and the National Museum, through the Museum’s Swayn Fellowship in Australian Design.
The exhibition was curated by Bendigo Art Gallery’s First Nations Curator, Kaantju woman Shonae Hobson, and brings together around 60 works by creators and brands including Grace Lillian Lee, Lyn-Al Young, Lisa Waup x Verner, Hopevale Arts and Culture Centre, MAARA Collective, the Yarrenyty Arltere Artists, AARLI
Meriam elder Uncle Alo Tapim telling the story about the lady in the Moon.
Tides of change
Lunar phases link to the changing tides, a relationship that is well established in Islander knowledge systems.
One practical application links to fishing. Elders teach that the best time to fish is during a neap (lower amplitude) tide during the First or Last Quarter Moon, rather than a spring (higher amplitude) tide during the New or Full Moon phase.
The spring tides are much bigger, meaning the tidal waters rush in and out more significantly, stirring up silt and sediment on the sea floor. This clouds the water, making it harder for fish to see the bait and fishers to see the fish.