An article by Jane Ure-Smith in the Financial Times - Immersed in Aboriginal Dreaming - reports on a foundation story of Australia's indigenous people told in a multimedia exhibition in The Box, Plymouth's cultural centre.

Tjanpi Sisters. Image: National Museum of Australia

'In Songlines: Tracking the Seven Sisters, contemporary art meets history, science and cosmology to tell a foundation story of the indigenous people of Australia, one of the world’s oldest continuing societies.'

Walinynga rock art. Image: National Museum of Australia

The National Museum of Australia’s award-winning exhibition has come to The Box, Plymouth, England. Experience ancient stories from the world’s oldest continuing culture, told through more than 300 paintings and objects by over 100 different artists. Take an epic journey that crosses three states, three deserts and some 500,000 square kilometres. With ceramics, paintings, sculpture, installation and film, immerse yourself in an exhibition that uses the power of art and culture to connect us across time zones and international borders.

The Seven Sisters songlines are among the most significant of the extensive creation tracks that crisscross Australia. The story of the Seven Sisters is one of pursuit and escape, desire and magic, and the power of family bonds. Explore two different parts of the Seven Sisters songlines: the significant rock art site of Walinynga (Cave Hill), and the dynamic collaborative artwork project that created the tjanpi Seven Sisters Are Flying.

Walinynga rock art. Image: National Museum of Australia

Walinynga, also known as Cave Hill, is a significant Seven Sisters Tjukurpa (Dreaming) site in the Aṉangu, Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara (APY) lands of remote north-west South Australia. Here the exploits of the Seven Sisters and their pursuer, the shape-shifter Wati Nyiru, are revealed in rich layers of rock art, and in the features of the cave and its surrounds. Until recently, the rock art of Walinynga has only been seen by a few visitors, in the company of the traditional owners. This interactive allows you to explore Walinynga and engage with the Seven Sisters at this special place. Seven Sisters rock art reproduced with the permission of Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara and the Walinynga (Cave Hill) traditional owners.

Exhibition: 21 Oct 2021 - 27 Feb 2022

Open Tuesdays to Sundays and Bank holidays.

click here to read more on the National Museum of Australia website

click here for the exhibition information

click here to read the full article

Click here to visit the Australia Rock Art Archive