Celebrating NAIDOC Week.

Poster is by Wiradjuri artist, Lani Balzan. The theme for this year's celebrations is "Songlines - the living narrative of our nation"  

While Capt Arthur Philip and the rest of the Colonists may have thought the local indigenous people who greeted them were unsophisticated by European Standards and seemingly nomadic. They in fact had a strong and long history with the land, and held their knowledge and history in Songlines that go back to the dawn of time and the Dreaming. 

Passed on from generation to generation, and in some places recorded through complex carvings on trees, or painting on walls of caves, and carved into rock, this ageless narrative tells of a history and connection to people, land and the landscape that extends further than any other culture or civilisation on earth.

The poster while it depicts all the songlines from across the county coming together, is remarkably similar to the Aboriginal Pedagogy which is defined in the 8 ways of learning. 

This Aboriginal learning framework is expressed at its simplest as eight interconnected pedagogies involving narrative-driven learning, visualised learning processes, hands-on/reflective techniques, use of symbols/metaphors, land-based learning, indirect/synergistic logic, modelled/scaffolded genre mastery, and connectedness to community. (8 ways Wiki) It is more complex obviously when viewed as each nation, family or group add their own culture, history and important understandings to the system. Learning is not seen as linear, but an interconnected, fluid and evolving.

How we learn - culture way

1. We connect through the stories we share.
2. We picture our pathways of knowledge.
3. We see, think, act, make and share without words.
4. We keep and share knowledge with art and objects.
5. We work with lessons from land and nature.
6. We put different ideas together and create new knowledge.
7. We work from wholes to parts, watching and then doing.
8. We bring new knowledge home to help our mob.

NAIDOC Week will also see the close of the remarkable Exhibition Murrumbidgee MarraMarra which has drawn record crowds to the Griffith Regional Art Gallery.  

However prior to that happening, the Gallery has played host to a Gala Event to celebrate NAIDOC week.    The evening celebrated the significance of culture in telling stories, Songlines that have passed down through generations, and also reinterpretations of personal stories.  Murrumbidgee MarraMarra is visual art experience, powerful, evocative and filled with both ancient and modern ways of telling story. 

Tonight we heard from one of those visual artists, Ms Veronica Collins.  I met Veronica years ago when she created works for an exhibit at the Cottage Gallery.  Veronica worked alongside Di Tarr and they lived and breathed that local exhibition and the one that followed in Sydney.  Veronica's work is framed within the strong geometric patterns that define Wiradjuri work, and yet is post modernism at its finest.  Veronica spoke of her work and also surprised the audience with a new project is part of.  Her artwork is being reproduced on clothing and it looks wonderful.  Emdar Designs is coordinating and the printing is being done locally as well.  

Music was via what is now regarded as the oldest wind instrument in the world.  Our young artist did an outstanding job in producing the haunting voice of the Didgeridoo. 

The young dancers then began their stories.  The first half reflecting traditional dance.  They emerged from the Centenary Spears Installation and this in itself was very moving.  However i fell apart with the very modern dance that was created to the music of Gurrumul Yunupingu and Blue King Brown "Gatha Mawula Revisited".  Its a stunning song to begin with and this young team of dancers gave it another level of emotion.  Tears Tears Tears.  

Wiradjuri man, John Muk Muk Burke then gave the next part of this extraordinary feast of narratives. Story Telling takes on many many forms.  He told his story of his family and his journey to his awakening as a Wiradjuri man.  He unpacked his own story against some of the great wrongs that been brought upon our First Nation.  Reciting his poems, brought full circle to the Songline theme of the 2016 NAIDOC Week and gave meaning to the narratives of a proud people not just being about something in the past, but that these stories, histories truths and ways of being , knowing and becoming are connected to today and the future.

We are moving forward, our community is slowly lifting itself up and out of ignorance, and racist intolerance.  We have people people who are working together to build up Aboriginal young people and give them ways of telling their own story and also pf participating.  Hopefully as we continue to learn about each other NAIDOC week will become a focus for everyone.  

Tonight was brought together by so many people, Council Staff , community members and I want to say thank you.