Reconciliation Place Slivers
To celebrate Indigenous leadership, this artwork focuses on two Aboriginal men. Neville Bonner, a Jagera man, fought for his people ‘within the system’, and became the first Indigenous Senator in the Australian Parliament (1971). Vincent Lingiari, a Gurindji man, led his people in a walk-off at Wave Hill Station in the Northern Territory in 1966 which began the Aboriginal land rights movement in Australia.
The southern face of the artwork features an artist’s representation of a carpet snake (Neville Bonner’s totem) burnt into a redgum timber surface behind Bonner’s image. The northern faces feature a timeline with images depicting significant events during the fifteen-year campaign for recognition of land rights.
The lower image on the north-eastern side was derived from the Gurindji Freedom Banner, a tapestry created by Gurindji women depicting the Wave Hill walk-off.
The featured song, ‘From Little Things Big Things Grow’, by Paul Kelly and Kev Carmody, tells the story of Wave Hill and Vincent Lingiari.
Specifications
Location:
Parkes ACT, Australia
Aboriginal Cultural Advisor:
Sharon Payne
Architect:
Paul Barnett
Concept Designers:
Marcus Bree, Benita Tunks
Final Designer:
Benita Tunks
Graphic Designer:
Alan Vogt
Year:
2004