Narrawong Kang-o-meerteek Small Towns Transformation

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About the Project

Kang-o-meerteek (Dhauwurd Wurrung for ‘mountain to sea’) is a public art project about cultural stories and meeting places in Narrawong. This project was delivered as part of the Small Town Transformation initiative, a part of the Labor Government’s $20 million Regional Arts package in the 2015-16 State Budget. The initiative encourages communities to embrace a creative vision in their transformation.

The Mayapa Weeyn (‘Make Fire’) sculpure installed on Mount Clay (Cart Mountain) pays tribute to the Cart Gunditj and all fifty-nine clans of the Dhauwurd Wurrung. The design recalls the signal fires the Cart Gunditj lit to signal to other clans when whales beached. When non-Aboriginal whalers arrived, the fires were lit to signal a whale in the bay.

Mayapa Weeyn: designed and constructed by Walter Saunders, with construction assistance by Jason Scott and Andrew Walsh. Stainless steel and basalt. Photo by Damian Goodman

Koontabpul Thirng Wuul (‘Whale Sun Shadow’) is a meeting place, nestled beside the Surry River at the township of Narrawong.  The sculptural installation includes a human sundial and four sculpted stone seats. The basalt seats that surround the sundial are based on Greystone, an unusual pale grey Southern Right Whale. The paving includes a map of the Portland Bay coast with markers for the two sculptures.

Koontabpul Thirng Wuul: designed and constructed by Glenn Romanis and Mark Trinham with construction assistance from Brodie Hill. Basalt, steel, sandstone. Photo by Damian Goodman

The sculptures were launched at a community event in the Mt Clay State Forest near Narrawong, Victoria in November 2018. The legacy of this project draws on three years of dreaming, talking, designing, planning, digging and planting.