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The concept was to use mapping to illustrate how the landscape around Melbourne has been changed by settlers development since the 17th century. The flags were arranged in such a way so as to create a vertical mapping. The first set of flags were grey, dreary and very linear, showing the streets of Melbourne as it is presently. These flags were then replaced over three weeks, replacing these industrial looking flags with an ocher palette and organic seven natural forms, revealing the landscape of the original Koori people and their areas of cultural significance that have been so bewilderingly transformed by urban development.

So in the end the whole installation was transformed from rectilinear grey to warm organic ocher, in a time based symbolic portrayal of the corruption of a landscape.

This project was conducted in conjunction with the fantastic artists of the Anangu Pitjanjantjara, APA (Arts Project Australia) and the WOMAD foundation in 2000. The banners design were derived from original drawings made in the 1950’s by Pitjanjatjara children in their mission schools. We discovered the drawings at the Ernabella Art centre, Central Australia, where the director had archived them away in a card board box all these years. The banners were made and flown at WOMADalaide that year. They also went to Germany on exhibition to raise funds for several reconciliation protests in South Australia. The designs or “walkas” were painted onto fabric, enlarged from photos of the originals. The original conté crayon drawings were absolute ‘gold dust’, and went on to be properly archived and presented in a SA museum, I believe.

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