Our design shows the Aboriginal Totem groups from all over the Eyre Peninsula coming together through the connections of both the desert and the ocean.
They are guided by two rainbow serpents who are connecting and guiding us on our way to Adelaide for the Power Cup.
This journey is highlighted through our totem groups all moving towards a Black Swan which represents the totem of the Kaurna People.
The Rainbow Serpents run through the centre, and on the outside we see 32 gathered family groups representing all of the members of our Port Lincoln SAASTA academy.
This highlights connections to the dreaming story and how the serpent used to guide all living things to a certain area.
Our artwork is about walking around proud and staying strong in our culture through respecting the knowledge of our Elders and ancestors and being young leaders in our community.
We have featured the sun in the top right hand corner as a symbol of our Elders’ knowledge and the power of yarning.
We have also represented travel paths and song lines leading to water sources to show how the knowledge travels through Country and how we are caretakers of that knowledge as young leaders.
Our Team Story is written as a song because music helps us stay connected to our culture and to each other.
We all come from the land and water, and culture is the backbone to each of us.
The boomerang at the top of the design symbolises that culture is always in our blood and no matter where our pathways take us, we will always return to Country.
The centre of the design symbolises Kaurna land, which is the Country that unites us all as one.
The flowing river in the middle of the design symbolises our path to the future.
Similar to a river, our future is ever-changing and no two paths are the same.
Our collaborative piece incorporates seven main language groups coming together.
The white on the edges is to signify peace and the Torres Strait Islander culture.
The pathways that lead to the centre use earthly colours to represent the land and rocks, which was completed by a proud Yamitji student. These paths lead to the weaving aspect of the design which represents Ngarrindjeri culture.
Alongside that is the greenery next to the water which represents the rushes that the Ngarrindjeri people use for weaving and the waterways of Kaurna country.
At the top a Boonwurruny student represented his country, where turtles are found.
The seven circles scattered across the artwork symbolise the seven languages that our academy share.
The butterfish at the bottom of the collaborative piece was incorporated by a proud Narungga student.
The brown Mimis across the artwork were interlaced by an Arrernte student, along with honey ants and their nests.
The animal prints are the Ibis and Kangaroo, which are of significance and commonality to Kaurna land.
A story of journey and connection representing Kaurna (reds), Peramangk (greens) and Ngarrindjeri (blues) symbols depicting young people and their journey onto neighbouring Country for learning and sharing.
The circles are the meeting places for sharing and learning, the lines linked are their journeys, and the U shapes represent the students.
The hand prints in this design are our way of representing our ancestors, family, community and our connection to land, plants, animals and water.
We have incorporated our Totems which connect us to country. By respecting our ancestors and acknowledging our present, we can begin our journey into the future.
The first being the focal point of the Spencer Gulf as this is the land we as an academy are situated on. We recognise that our academy sits on Barngarla land. Not only does the Spencer Gulf hold deep spiritual meaning but it is also a place of meeting and significance to everybody living here.
We included blue dotted circle patterns and symbols in the water to represent our families, friends and others close to us supporting us throughout the transition from the present to the future.
The second aspect of our design is the symbol of us as an academy in the present time.
The third major aspect of this year’s design is the representation of the future.
Footprints were also an additional detail that has been included. These being placed moving upwards from present to future, represent us crossing over and transitioning from where we are now to where we will be.
The Kaurna shield is at the centrepiece of our design as our academy meets on Kaurna country. From the black centrepiece there are two pathways to meeting places which have been detailed with the colours of the two schools who are part of our academy.
From the meeting places both schools link into two parts of the environment as we observed that our academy had many students whose Aboriginality comes from the coastal areas and the desert areas of Australia.
Along the hills of the desert areas on the left hand side we have the Kaurna symbol for the members of the class who knew their totem animals.
The symbols inside of the desert hills represents a kinship system but only a small amount is shown on the design to represent how the kinship connections have been lost over time.
The Playford Academy is made up of members of nations across Australia. From the tropical north, the desert centre, to the coasts of the Yorke Peninsula.
Our homes are represented through the hills of the Flinders Ranges, the flowing Murray River, the oceans and the coasts, all coming together at our academy on Kaurna land under the Kaurna shield.
Our connection to the land, the Dreaming and our ancestors flows through the centre of our home as we continue our journey of exploring our identity.
Artwork
NAIDOC history
NAIDOC origins can be traced to the emergence of Aboriginal groups in the 1920's which sought to increase awareness in the wider community of the status and treatment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians.