This week, students at our school had the enriching opportunity to take part in an online interactive session hosted by the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra. The sessions celebrated this year’s NAIDOC theme: The Next Generation – Strength, Vision and Legacy.
On Monday, our Year 6 students participated in the virtual excursion, followed by a combination of Year 3 and 4 classes on Friday. Each session centered around three compelling portraits, with students guided by an online educator to listen, discuss, and reflect on the stories and history shared.
Inspired by the insights and experiences of Shelley Ware, a proud Yankunytjatjara and Wirangu woman, students were encouraged to engage deeply with First Nations cultures and storytelling through art.
Year 6 students explored Blood Money – Infinite Excursion Note by Aunty Regina Pilawuk Wilson and were inspired to create their own banknote-style artworks. Each student depicted an important person from their own lives or community—honouring the theme of legacy and recognising personal role models.
Meanwhile, the Year 3/4 group responded to Ngalim-Ngalimbooroo Ngagenybe, a work by renowned East Kimberley artist Shirley Purdie. Drawing on the beauty of their own connections to Country, the students created artworks that reflected their favourite places in the land where they live, learn and play.
To mark NAIDOC Week more fully, our school plans to revisit these powerful artworks and combine them into one large collaborative portrait. This collective artwork will symbolise not only the strength and vision of our young artists but also their growing appreciation for the legacy of First Nations peoples and culture.
It has been a moving and creative journey for our students—one that reflects the spirit of NAIDOC and the power of art to tell stories across generations.
