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Colourful and Cultural Connections

Colourful and Cultural Connections

Written by Kloe Phelan

It is the second time our boarders have received a uniquely designed boarding shirt. One that simultaneously unites them as boarders and sets them apart from the day students as their own community.

These shirts are worn by boarders of all year levels and create a sense of belonging specific to our students who live on campus, spending extended amounts of time away from their families.

Year 10 boarder Darcy Lewis is a proud descendant of the Iningai people from Central West Queensland. As a student who openly seizes opportunities to connect his peers together, Darcy took the confidence he gained from his involvement in the 2023 artwork to spearhead the 2024 project.

Gathering three other First Nations boarders; Ezra Akiba (Year 10), Cruz Baker (Year 11) and Mark Humphreys (Year 12), the three collaborated on

the artwork, also amassing involvement from many other boarding students.

It was important to them that representation was varied and brought together diverse backgrounds.

“We’re all from really different places,” Darcy said.

Ezra calls Saibai Island in the Torres Strait home, Cruz is from Dharug country in New South Wales, and Mark Humphreys’ family are descendants of the Mandandanji people in Maranoa, out near Roma.

It keeps us connected to each other’s stories and our families and it’s really nice.

The four young designers brought their own creative instincts, tying in the Brisbane River and Spring Hill as meeting places, the convergence of their respective families, communities and totems, as well as depicting the greater boarding community.

“Darcy started with handprints of a large cohort of people in the house, using different shades of blue to connect the boarders. Then we put on the dot painting of different meeting places around Brisbane in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander colours. We put the totems on there, individually, in the foreground,” Mark said.

The totems (Ezra – snake, Darcy – goanna, Cruz – emu, and Mark – red kangaroo) are spiritual emblems specific to each Indigenous family or people, realised in the form of the animals believed to have inhabited the land long before humans.

Students Ezra Akiba, Darcy Lewis, Cruz Baker, and Mark Humphreys led the project

Head of Griffith House, Tim Holzgrefe was particularly excited to see the artwork feature on the 2024 boarding shirt, saying “It is very special because the boys get to share their culture with the wider community in the boarding precinct.

“It’s a piece of Grammar forever and the boys got to speak about it at the whole school NAIDOC Week assembly... Speaking to each individual element.”

The mutual intention of the artists was to celebrate and emphasise diversity, making sure everyone feels comfortable.

“It keeps us connected to each other’s stories and our families and it’s really nice,” Mark said, “It makes you feel like you’re completely accepted.”

The 2024 Boarding Artwork connects students of diverse backgrounds
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