Abbotsford Road Public School

Create an artwork for Abbotsford Road Public School to represent the land they live on, and connection to Country. Artwork will also represent the schools commitment to learning. Artwork will be used for their school sports uniforms.

This artwork represents the learning hub that is Abbotsford Public School and its close proximity to the Parramatta river. Sitting on the Peninsula of the Parramatta river, the surrounding areas of Abbotsford Public School is also the migration destination of the Bar-tailed Godwit. This bird travels for thousands of miles to Scandinavia, Alaska & Northern Asia to breed, and then returns to the shorelines of the Parramatta river, this trip will usually mean the Bar-tailed Godwit will halve its weight. Abbotsford Public School has adopted this bird as their logo or mascot, and I think what it represents, is perseverance and the will to rise above all challenges. In this artwork, the Bar-Tailed Godwit is surrounded by the symbol for man/woman/child, this represents the students coming to the school to further their education. There are several thousand dots surrounding this area, all in varying sizes and colours in blue, white and yellow. These dots represent the diverse cultural differences and backgrounds of all students who have attended the school over the years, coming together to learn as one. The school also sits on the land of the traditional owners, the Wangal people. The totem for Wangal is the goanna, which is represented in the artwork, standing strong and watching over the school. The artwork itself is an aerial view of the Parramatta River in and around the Abbotsford area, it showcases the land forms, as well as the foot prints along the muddy shorelines in which the Bar-tailed Godwit feeds and lives. The green sections showcasing the various parks and golf club, while the brown lined areas, showcase the urban sprawl from many generations of population growth in the area. What it brings together is a balance between Mother Nature and urban development.