Minyt’ji immersive Mapping

Minyt’ji immersive Mapping

Artist Statement

“The land is complete. It has all that it needs for its continuation and sustenance. But it cannot express itself. It cannot sing, paint and dance its’ identity. And so, it has grown a tongue. That tongue is the Yolŋu. The Indigenous people of Australia. They exist to articulate the land. That is their reason for existence.” (Djambawa Marawili)

Key themes expressed through our artistic practice explore the universal power of connectedness. Immersive mediums employ a decolonising aesthetic of Affect that reach beyond human reason to activate complex multi-species interconnections found in Yolŋu njarra (law). At every stage of the project from development through to the exhibition installation, key Yolngu stakeholders inform the cultural appropriateness of the visual and narrative elements of the immersive artwork. The the Dhukurrurru ga Mäna AR installation will include triggers to access traditional knowledge information to deepen the immersive experience.

Dhukurrurru ga Mäna AR directly benefits a selection of The work fosters intercultural understanding as diverse audiences will access an immersive experience of Yolngu culture. This project builds on the achievements of Minytji immersive Mapping, launched at CDU gallery in 2022, generously supported by Arts NT, by developing a new, more sophisticated and considered AR installation and its documentation. Artists living in remote communities have the opportunity to reach new audiences and extend their art practice to include new digital techniques and technologies.

The main painting in this installation represents Dhalatj – the knowledge of the ancestors. It is this wisdom that travels down from Dhalinybuy as water.

The relationship of the rivers (gurrutu) is the same as the clan lands that they travel through, Yothu Yindi (mother-child). The Datiwuy Ganambarr is a mother clan to the child Wangurri clan of Dhalinybuy homeland, where the Cato River runs down to Arnhem Bay.

This Yirrtja/Dhuwa painting is about Dhukurrurru & Mäna. The upper centre section is dhukurruru (a rock at the mouth of the river that is almost always underwater where it is quite deep.), and the white anvil shape is like mud and water currents that water patterns running over the rock. The lower section is a dhuwa painting, where the Yindi (Child) river and the Yothu (Mother) river meet and merge into Arnhem Bay. This is the homeground of the shark Mäna.

Dhalatj means knowledge of the ancestors. It is this wisdom that travels down from Dhalinybuy as water. The story in the painting is about Gularri (cycad leaves, branches, bark, logs) travelling down from Dhalinybuy with the dhalatj freshwater. It is near the end of the wet season, and he is preparing for the new season by clearing the ‘badness’ away from the river. He carries it down to the saltwater to help clear up the country and the river’s soul.

About the artists

Building on 10-years of collaborative cultural activities in Yolŋu Homelands, InDigiMatha  – a Homeland Studio model developed by Goŋ Wanhurr through the formation of the Nambara Arts and Cultural Heritage Centre at Dhalinybuy – promotes educational and immersive curatorial engagements with the GLAM sector. Through the work of InDigiMatha Immersive Lab we have identified the infrastructural developments required to better equip communities (Elders, Artists, Art workers) with the requisite skills and training for curating Metaverse Mala – the transmission of immersive interactive cultural events and engagements direct from Homeland to Exhibition.

InDigiMatha is an East Arnhem Homeland community program and Industry engagement strategy that has been developed by Goŋ Wanhurr Corporation over the past decade in partnership with local, regional and national partners. Our most recent project, Miny’tji Immersive Mapping, presented at the Purrumpa Conference in Adelaide, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Australia Council’s ATSI board, and on a second exhibition launch held at the CDU Waterfront Campus in Darwin, elicited an impressive public response.

The Darwin CDU Waterfront event was featured by NT media channel and press. The InDigiMatha Homeland Studio model and the InDigiMatha immersive Lab programs connect remote homeland communities in East Arnhem to the Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museum (GLAM) exhibition and event sector through the use of digital XR technologies.

The InDigiMatha Homeland Studio model runs three core programs: Elder-in-Residence, Artist-inResidence and Curator-in-Residence for the creation and co-curation of cultural digital art and immersive exhibitions for the GLAM sector.

This innovative Homeland engagement program has been developed over the past decade by East Arnhem Yolŋu Aboriginal Corporation, Goŋ Wanhurr working with local, regional and interjurisdictional partners. It builds on successful national and international engagements through the presentation of our unique immersive AR and VR content. From a community perspective the initiative’s main objective is to promote sustainable outcomes through the intergenerational engagement transmission and preservation of cultural knowledge, and the production of digital art and cultural content within and between communities.

Credits: Tommy Riyakurray Munyarryun, Djambawa Marawili, Kevin Lucas

URL: indigimatha.com