Heather Wunjarra Koowootha was born in 1966 in Cairns and grew up in Yarrabah. This exhibition brings together two series of watercolour paintings by Koowootha drawn from traditional ecological knowledge of plants and marine life passed down to her from her mother (Yidinji peoples, Yarrabah) and father (Wik-Mungkan peoples, Aurukun).

For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, traditional knowledge and uses of plants and marine life vary between groups depending on geographical location and natural environment. A holistic understanding of this knowledge views the natural world as interconnected and sacred, encompassing physical, emotional, spiritual, and intellectual dimensions and is transferred from one generation to the next through oral storytelling and cultural practices. 

Many plants and marine life are not only an important food source, but highly valued for their medicinal qualities and spiritual significance, with some species considered highly sacred particularly when incorporated into rituals and ceremonies.

In 2019 Koowootha produced sixteen botanical works for the 2021 Ritual exhibition that explored the nutritional, material and magical properties of local flora used for food, healing and the production of hunting and gathering and ceremonial objects. In particular, the illustrations carry important knowledge associated with the medicinal and ritual uses of plants in birth, women’s business, marriage, death and other important cultural ceremonies. 

These works are now held in the Gallery Collection, and in 2023 the Gallery, supported by Double R Arts Foundation commissioned Koowootha to produce a further twelve works that expanded into series to incorporate the local marine life used for food and healing practices by the Yidinji and Wik Mungkan peoples.

These exquisite drawings, each finished with handwritten text describing the specific qualities and uses of each species in Koowootha’s own words, offer a unique and rare document of the knowledge passed down through the generations.