Konstantina
Raining on Eora (Garigal) - KONKK0066
| Size: H-151 X W-100 cm. |
| Medium: Acrylic and Ochre on Canvas |
| SOLD |
| Product No: KONKK0066 |
She is Garigal.
In Sydney, including around Broken Bay and Berowra Creek, a devastating impact from social dislocation, disease, conflict, and dispossession came, almost immediately, with the colonisation of the area. It is for this reason that little first-hand information of the Sydney Aboriginal clans and language structures has survived. The knowledge that is available has been filtered through the eyes of early colonists. Whitewashed.
It should also be remembered that those who did record details of the local Aboriginal Culture also contributed to the destruction of that Culture.
It is widely understood that the Guringai tribe, for which the local Aboriginal clan, the Garigal, were part of roamed lands that ran all the way between Lake Macquarie and the Sydney Basin, therefore Berowra being a central location.
On a recent trip to Country, I was called to Berowra, Berowra Waters to be exact. With nothing to offer Country but myself I walked quietly through the scrub, talking to the trees, and noticing how very occupied the bush felt. Never before have I felt a presence so strong.
The Old People were everywhere!
I was guided to a hidden lookout point that looked to have used by mob for thousands of years. It looked straight up the guts of the mighty Darkinjung (Hawkesbury). I was beckoned to a huge rock crevice and cave no doubt used as a seasonal camp when the seasons were right. The gifts Country gave to me that day were innumerable it felt the least I could do was allow her to share with you her story.
Painted with ochres and natural earth pigments sustainably foraged on this day, this piece of work is Country sharing with you her beauty, scars, truth.
The Frontier Wars of the Darkinjung were some of the most brutal, so many kin lost, and so much greed and degradation. This place is where the most horrific acts of violence, rape, sexual slavery, and depravity occurred unchecked. She has seen it here, and she feels it. But Country; she is still there, and on that Wednesday in December she found me, she sought me out to help show you her spirit.