“Goolugadup – Kal-ya-gul” 2018 responds to the site now known as Heathcote by centring the enduring presence and belonging of Wadjuk Noongar people. Goolugadup, meaning “place of children,” was a significant camping and cultural site where families gathered to fish, teach, tell stories and hold ceremony. Natural springs, well-worn paths, fish traps along the Derbal Yerrigan, abundant sea grass, mullet and shellfish sustained generations. The exhibition evokes these layered histories, honouring a landscape that has changed dramatically while affirming that Noongar memory and connection remain strong.

The work is both a celebration and an act of mourning. It acknowledges pride in culture and survival, while confronting the deep sadness of stories disrupted and obscured over time. Through research, oral histories and artistic practice, the artist pieces together fragments of memory, inviting audiences to share respectfully in the beauty and trauma intertwined within the creative process. The exhibition speaks not only of place, but of the responsibility carried by those who remember and retell its stories.

Central to the work is the use of traditional natural materials—Balga resin, Marri and Acacia gums, Jarrah bark, Zamia seedpods, ochres, beeswax and shell remnants—many gathered with the artist’s granddaughters. This act of harvesting reconnects generations and continues cultural traditions that have endured for tens of thousands of years. Using wax encaustic as a metaphor for history, the layering of materials reflects how change overlays but does not erase what came before. Beneath all transformations, Country remains, continuing to call its people home.