Last Wednesday I went on a field trip with my Indigenous Art History class to Stradbroke Island (known as Minjerribah to the local people). We spent the morning with an Aboriginal artist from the Quandamooka tribe. She explained how the art form of weaving had been lost for many years when the Australian government enacted the assimilation policy that prohibited native peoples from practicing their cultural traditions. She was working the re-establish the weaving tradition from descriptions and artifacts. Then she taught us how to weave using traditional materials. I wove a mini basket which was pretty exciting.
We had lunch at a little cafe and then a Quandamooka guide gave a spear-throwing, bush tucker, and didgeridoo presentation. Then he taught us how to throw a boomerang. And guess who threw their boomerang into a tree? I'm obviously not surviving by myself in the bush.
