Connecting culture, technology & teamwork

CASA staff recently had the unique opportunity to connect with sand artist and drone innovator Lowell Hunter. Lowell is a proud Nyul Nyul Saltwater man and his artwork ‘Working Together 1’ is showcased in our Naarm (Melbourne office) Boardroom.

Indigenous artworks are featured in our offices as part of our Stretch RAP celebrating Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art, culture and stories. ?

The journey of CASA procuring the artwork started 2 years ago, when the Melbourne based Reconciliation Action Plan Working Group (RWG) were asked to assist in the process of procuring artwork for the office.

The team wanted to find a local artist and meaningfully connect with the artwork and artist.

They discovered ‘Working Together 1’ and felt it illustrated a story of working together to achieve a common goal, which to the team was a perfect representation of the importance of the strong teamwork culture in the Melbourne office.

A story of connection and creativity

Lowell was asked by the RWG to come into the Melbourne office over a lunch break and share his journey, meaning of his artwork and use of drones.

Lowell says he has a really a deep cultural spiritual connection to country and that connection alongside his love for modern technology and using drones and cameras and getting creative and creating content, led to a full-time job as a sand artist, winning several awards and worldwide recognition.

‘Being a First Nations person in this country and growing up in different places and spaces, some of that was being subjected to racism at school, the footy field and work, so constantly throughout my life I've been treated differently,’ Lowell said.

‘In November 2019 I was heading down the beach after delivering a cultural training session and I was thinking about cultural safety and I started to think about, well, where do I feel safe? ‘It was right there on the beach because I'm a saltwater man. People are deeply connected to the ocean, and that's a place of healing and it's a place where we go.

‘I felt a big connection to the ocean there and then and that's what prompted me to draw a circle in the sand.

‘I also drew symbols on the outside of that circle representing old people and elders, because that's where I get a lot of my knowledge from is sitting there listening to them and I sat myself in that circle and thought, well, this is it this is where I feel safe. “I was only focused on keeping my Liyan strong, Liyan is your spirit”

‘For me it's about getting down and just slowing down my mind and body and just thinking about the importance of the continuation of our culture.

‘I don't put too much pressure on myself and I just like to feel into the work. For those of you that are creatives, you know, you probably have a similar process where it's just not forced or rushed.

‘I’m tapping into 80,000 years of culture, when I start to think about what I do, it’s generational, it’s a deep cultural, spiritual connection that I have to Country that you can’t necessarily teach. It’s got to come within you”

‘I also love technology and another way of clearing my mind was to just fly the drone.

‘By incorporating modern technology like drones, I am capturing storytelling with a modern twist which is a powerful way of connecting with people.

The meaning of Working Together 1

‘For the ‘Working Together 1’ artwork, the circles are for me, a really important symbol for coming together in meeting place,' he explains.

‘I created it at Ocean Gove in Victoria and Working Together is the communities or meeting places, and then you have the straight lines that connect those communities together or different people, individuals together.

‘The squiggly lines is the journey out. People are all coming into that common goal of working together and sometimes we have to go out as well. ‘In a sense that there's all these squiggly lines, but I guess when we are working on different things, it's not always a straight path. Sometimes there are bends and twists, and we eventually get there.

‘The shapes that you see with the sort of flares, that's like a celebration. Like when we dance and kick our feet out.

‘The beach is a creative and spiritual space.’

'What I’d like to be known for in my legacy work is being able to bring our young people into that space nurture their development culturally and making sure they do feel strong and proud. And don’t need to shy away from being a blackfella.'

If you missed out on the session you can catch up now on Horace TV. You can also learn more about Lowell on his Salty One website.

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