A year on since the Cara Djubak public artwork was installed on Thomas Road in Casuarina, we reflect on the significance and meaning of the artwork.
Cara Djubak means Spider Orchid in Nyoongar language, and the artwork features delicate spider orchids within a ‘yooral’ carrying bowl sitting atop three paperbark trunks.
The public artwork reflects and celebrates Nyoongar heritage and the important cultural context of the area.
Situated on a roundabout, it was funded by developer contributions collected for public art and Main Roads WA, becoming a gateway artwork to the City of Kwinana.
The Milne Stonehouse/Martin team created the artwork, with Justin Martin saying his art was based around traditional techniques and stories passed down from his grandmothers and a prominent Elder local to Kwinana.
The artist’s concept includes spider orchids as they were part of the Nyoongar spring diet with the stem eaten and the flowers used for ceremonial headdresses.
The yooral was often used by Nyoongar women as a vessel for carrying babies, food and tools.
This artwork was commissioned to broadly reference the significance of the surrounding land to Aboriginal people, including five known Aboriginal Heritage sites in the area.