Ancient Aboriginal Art
By Isobella Bennett-Tonkin
Before the Europeans
Indigenous art, like many other aspects of Indigenous culture, was not understood by the British settlers. Art was an account of Indigenous everyday experiences but more importantly it was a visual expression of their beliefs. The inspiration for much of Indigenous art was from the Dreaming and the spirit world. By painting, carving, drawing and decorating, Indigenous people were renewing contact with the Dreaming and expressing their beliefs visually. Art was also used to communicate, to record history, to tell stories, to teach and to mark territory. By understanding Indigenous art, we can gain a broader understanding of what Indigenous culture was like before 1788.
during the invasion
The Aboriginals painted many things the occured during that time, dreamtime stories but then they started to paint ships because thats what they saw. When the ships started arriving they started to paint what was happening to them. Paintings were slowly decreasing because the Europeans were taking and using their reasources eg. rocks, sticks and using their water reasources. The paintings were very beautiful but are now slowly fading and can hardly been seen.