MAIL by NHO delivers news and views tailored to those who share our value of design. Published to a gentle schedule, you’ll only hear from us when we have something of note to share.
Exploring Wurrdha Marra
03.04.25
As part of our ongoing commitment to learning and reconciliation, we recently invited a group of clients to join us for a guided tour of the National Gallery of Victoria’s Wurrdha Marra collection, led by First Nations Curator, Edwina Green. The experience provided a rich and layered exploration of contemporary Indigenous art and design, offering insight into the ways First Nations artists express Country, culture, and connection through materiality, form, and storytelling.
The ever-evolving Wurrdha Marra exhibition space, meaning ‘Many Mobs’ in the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung language, occupies the ground floor and foyer of The Ian Potter Centre and features emerging to senior artists from different time periods and regions. The collection celebrates the diversity of First Nations art and design, fostering visual dialogues and juxtapositions that connect audiences with the many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities across the Country.
Photograph (above) by Sean Fennessy.
Janyinki Jukurrpa and Ngalyipi manu karnta Jukurrpa (Snake vine and women’s Dreaming), 1986, by Beryl Napangardi Robertson, and Untitled, 1989, by Lindsay Bird Mpetyan (foreground).
The British Museum Series, 2024, by Matthew Harris (background).
Photograph by Tim Carrafa.
Moving out of muteness, 2013, by Robert Andrew.
Photograph by Tim Carrafa.
Boomerangs, 2023, by Keemon Williams.
Photography by Tim Carrafa.
Big yam Dreaming, 1995, by Kwementyay Kngwarreye.
Photograph by Tim Carrafa.
The experience provided a rich and layered exploration of contemporary Indigenous art and design, offering insight into the ways First Nations artists express Country, culture, and connection through materiality, form, and storytelling.
The tour underscored the powerful intersection of Indigenous knowledge and contemporary design practice. From large-scale installations to intricate weavings and ceramics, the collection revealed deep narratives of resilience, innovation, and identity. Edwina’s thoughtful commentary illuminated the ways in which Indigenous artists challenge Western perspectives, embedding Country and ancestral knowledge into every aspect of their work. For our clients—many of whom shape the built environment—this was an opportunity to reflect on how these principles might inform a more meaningful, responsive approach to design.
As a B Corp certified business, we see immense value in experiences that broaden perspectives and encourage deeper engagement with First Nations culture. The Wurrdha Marra tour was a timely reminder of the role that art and design play in shaping conversations about history, truth-telling, and reconciliation.
We encourage others to visit the exhibition, fostering a greater appreciation for Indigenous artistry and its relevance to contemporary practice. For further details, visit the NGV website here.
Seven Sisters Song, 2021, by Kaylene Whiskey.
Photograph by Tim Carrafa.
Bark Salon, featuring a monumental display of 150 bark paintings from the NGV Collection.
Photograph by Tim Carrafa.
Car, art and the landscape, 1990, by Marylin Brown Petyarr.
Photograph courtesy of NGV.
Yabu, 2020, by Tony Albert.
Photograph courtesy of Tony Albert.
From large-scale installations to intricate weavings and ceramics, the collection revealed deep narratives of resilience, innovation, and identity… For our clients—many of whom shape the built environment—this was an opportunity to reflect on how these principles might inform a more meaningful, responsive approach to design.