Judy Watson's 'Bara' Sculpture to Honor Gadigal People in Sydney

Sydney has commissioned artist Judy Watson to create 'Bara', a permanent public sculpture for the Royal Botanic Garden overlooking Bennelong Point. The work, to be completed in 2020, pays tribute to the Gadigal people, the traditional custodians of the land. Watson, born in Mundubbera, Queensland in 1959, designed 'Bara' as two crescent-shaped fishing hooks traditionally made and used by Gadigal women for thousands of generations. The forms evoke local shells, harbor inlets, the sails of the Sydney Opera House, and the arch of the Harbour Bridge. The artist describes the installation as a reinvention of ancient gathering places where people sat by fires on headlands and ate together, providing a tranquil space for ceremony and reflection in a fast-paced city. 'Bara' is the fourth component of the Eora Journey public art program, curated by Hetti Perkins, which will include seven works by Indigenous artists celebrating the living culture and heritage of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in Sydney. The project is a collaboration with the Tribal Warrior Aboriginal Corporation and involved consultation with local Indigenous elders. The sculpture commemorates the Gadigal, who were decimated after British colonization beginning with James Cook's landing in 1788.