First Nations Welcome Project

First nations design

The concept design for this project emerged following comprehensive cultural consultation held at Ngununggula – Southern Highlands Regional Gallery in early 2024.

Community workshop Community workshop 2

Engaging 15 local community members and Elders, and 42 students from local primary and secondary schools, the consultation was facilitated through yarning circles, visual arts and creative writing exercises.

The artwork for the hospital’s Emergency Department (ED) window reflects the themes and motifs shared during the community consultation held on Gundungurra Country.

We thank the students from Mittagong Public School, Bowral Public School, St Paul's Primary School, Bowral High School and Chevalier College for their amazing contributions. You can read their poetry on the Red Room Poetry website.

Themes and meanings

The major themes that emerged can be summarised broadly as:

Connection to Country – The flowing ripples of rivers meet land and sky and throughout the work, patterning is inspired by murmurations, migration, travel tracks and trees. These textures show the interconnectedness between insects, animals, Ancestors, plants and people.

Cultural Identity – Wambulung / wumbarrung (black cockatoos) soar through the sky, carrying stories of Gundungurra. They symbolise renewal, hope, connectedness and spiritual guidance. Handprints and animal tracks throughout echo ancestral presence and the passing down of knowledge. Leaves are symbolic of bush medicine and the deep healing knowledge of First peoples.

Community & Family – Gathering circles, woven textures and layered pathways represent family connections, shared wisdom, and the strength of community healing together.

Emergency department window

Positioned near the Aboriginal Dreaming Garden and the Hospital’s main entrance, the design visually connects these spaces, ensuring a strong sense of belonging, healing, and a deep valuing of First Nations community and Country.

Over time, the motifs and themes will be extended through a series of works embedded into Country, reinforcing a sense of belonging, healing and cultural continuity across the hospital campus.

Placing art as a cultural anchor ensures that Aboriginal patients and families feel welcome and safe in this place. Health care must be accessible for everyone.

The First Nations Welcome Project was commissioned by NSW Health Infrastructure.