KONSTANTINA (KATE CONSTANTINE) - TARRA
KONSTANTINA (KATE CONSTANTINE)
TARRA, 2023
101 x 101 cm
acrylic on linen
REGION
Gadi/Eora
PROVENANCE
Direct from artist, NSWCooee Art Leven, Sydney NSW
STORY
As a saltwater woman, the place I feel most connected to on my Country is the water, specifically the Harbour. Arguably the place for me that has the most powerful engery is Tarra. Tarra is the point today known as Dawes Point, named for the gentle and kind Lieutenant Commander and Offical Astronomer in the First Fleet. He was stationed here for years, at what was considered, the outer most limit of occupation so that he could work through his telescopes without the obstruction of light from the camp. The young man befriended Patyegarang a young Gadigal woman with whom he had a close connection. It is because of this friendship that I today have been able to learn my traditional language which was long thought extinct! See Dawes and Patyegarang shared more than friendship, they shared language, and it is the small notebooks and journals that Dawes kept of this time that Professor Jaky Troy at USYD has been able breathe life back into our original Gadigal language. Visit Tarra, you will her energy and understand entirely.
ARTIST PROFILE
