For Girramay artist Nephi Denham, the word belonging is tied to connection to Country, family and community.
So it only seems fitting that as his artwork hangs on the walls of the National Museum of Australia's latest exhibition Belonging: Stories from Far North Queensland, it is placed next to pieces by his father Philip Denham and his niece Augustina Denham.
The family all create art at the Girringun Art Centre in Cardwell, Queensland, which represents art from the Nywaigi, Gugu Badhan, Warrgamay, Warungnu, Bandjin, Girramay, Gulngay, Jirrbal and Djiru people.
For Denham, it is a place where he and his family not only go to create but to connect with each other.
"For Augustine, she started coming to the arts centre a while ago to connect with her grandfather, learning the stories and stuff like that," he said.
"She loves hearing about it and just being able to pass on that knowledge from my father.
"And that happens with art, everywhere, for all of us."
This is the second iteration of Belonging, and features works by artists from Cardwell, Badu Island and Aurukun. The exhibition series follows the National Museum of Australia's acquisition of more than 400 artworks in partnership with the Indigenous Art Centre Alliance.
More than 100 emerging and established artists from Far North Queensland and the Torres Strait took part in the Belonging project, which saw them experiment with new materials and techniques to create a collection of artworks that represents the vibrant and innovative creativity of First Nationals artists as they explored the theme of belonging.
"When the museum was invited up to have a look at the artworks, we were so impressed by the strength of the collection, the significance of the collection," National Museum curator Catherine Czerw said.
"If you can imagine they've got 400 artworks all responding to that single thing, that's quite a very special thing. It's not just an exhibition or even a large exhibition. It's 400 works all responding in different ways from across that area.
"So rather than picking the strongest works, or the works by the most well-known artists, the museum decided to acquire the entire collection.
"I think what we have here is an incredible survey of time and place, that gives us some great insights into the history of these communities, their contemporary experience and what they have to say is really important."
The first interaction of Belonging featured 120 works by 29 artists from Hope Vale, Yarrabah, Moa Island and Mornington Island, and was on display from July 2022 until February this year.
Works from four other art centres - Bana Yirriji, Pormpuraaw, Wei' Num and Yalanji - will be on display in the next interaction in 2024.
We've made it a whole lot easier for you to have your say. Our new comment platform requires only one log-in to access articles and to join the discussion on The Canberra Times website. Find out how to register so you can enjoy civil, friendly and engaging discussions. See our moderation policy here.
