3 minute read
Aboriginal Victoria
Bark Ladies: Eleven Artists From Yirrkala Jesse Hisco
Narrm (Melbourne) is the land of people of the Kulin Nation and has been for the past 40,000 years. It is a place with a diverse Blak culture, one that is both ancient and contemporary.
1 Learn about the significance of Birrarung (Yarra River) and how certain native plants are used for food, medicine and fabrication on the Aboriginal Heritage Walk at Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne. +rbg.vic.gov.au
2 One of the largest and most important collections of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art and artefacts can be explored at The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia. Bark Ladies: Eleven Artists From Yirrkala is also on show at NGV International until 25 April. +ngv.melbourne
3 It was a place where Aboriginal curriculum was taught across the entire school. See Fight For Survival, an exhibition that tells the story of community action to save Northland Secondary College, at Bunjilaka Cultural Centre. +museumsvictoria.com.au
5 It’s a keeping place for Victoria’s Indigenous culture, and visitors to the Koorie Heritage Trustcan explore its galleries and join a guided walk along Birrarung. +koorieheritagetrust.com.au 4 Chef Nornie Bero brings the taste of the Torres Strait to Fed Square at her restaurant Big Esso. Native ingredients and dishes from Nornie’s childhood make up the menu. +mabumabu.com.au
6 Hear the whispers and songs of the Wurundjeri people when you download the app and map for the self-guided Billibellary’s Walk. The narrative offers an Indigenous perspective of the land on which the University of Melbourne’s Parkville campus stands. +murrupbarak.unimelb.edu.au
7 Birrarung means river of mists, and Marr means side. Now Birrarung Marr is a park on the northern banks of the Yarra, where visitors can observe the Birrarung Wilam art installation. +melbourne.vic.gov.au
8 He was the last ngurungaeta (Elder) of the Wurundjeri-wilam clan, and William Barak’s portrait can now be seen on the side of ARM Architecture’s 32-storey Barak Building in Swanston Square. +armarchitecture.com.au
Check out these eight activities and attractions, including guided walks, art and museum displays, to enhance your understanding of the oldest culture on Earth.
Big Esso Jesse Hisco
Jakobi
At the Royal Botanic Gardens, Jakobi leads visitors through a part of Melbourne that continues to have a significant cultural value to its Traditional Owners.
Nearly every day at 11am, guests at the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne gather to join the Aboriginal Heritage Walk, an exploration of the thriving culture and rich history of the First Peoples. Jakobi is the Aboriginal Programs Facilitator and often leads the tours, bringing visitors into a world they may not know a lot about.
“Not many people are aware that the Birrarung (Yarra River) once carved its way through the gardens,” he says. “This was before the river was straightened and widened to prevent natural seasonal flooding in the early twentieth century.”
Long before sport was played nearby on the MCG or varying landscapes were created in the Royal Botanic Gardens, this was a significant place for people of the Woiwurrung and Boonwurrung nations.
“This whole area was where thousands of people gathered together for ceremony, for trade, celebration and to hold inter-nation/ clan business,” Jakobi continues.
“It is a landscape that provided for such a large gathering of people, all in one place at one time. The land and the river was, and still is, bountiful, with an abundance of food, fresh water and resources for homes, tools, canoes and weaving.”
As he and his guests walk around the gardens, Jakobi explains the cultural value of this traditional meeting place. He also points out native plants and their uses.
“Of the 60,000 plants within the Melbourne Botanic Gardens, just under half of them are natives,” he says. “All our flora is unique. They are resilient and have formed adaptations to dry and hot landscapes. There are medicinal plants with cleansing aromas and there are culinary plants with amazing flavours. Plants don’t just have a single use – there might be food, utility, medicinal and fibre craft uses all in the one plant.”
Most visitors, he says, are surprised by what they discover on one of his tours. “It’s a raw and honest experience that challenges the common perspective with an alternative Indigenous perspective,” Jakobi explains. “A perspective of our shared history, of our shared future and of the landscape.” +rbg.vic.gov.au
Jakobi Artra Sartracom Aboriginal Heritage Walk, Royal Botanic Gardens Artra Sartracom
