Welcoming Our Newest Member – Coomaditchie
16-10-2024
Issuing a warm welcome to our newest member joining our association; Coomaditchie United Aboriginal Corporation.
The Coomaditchie United Aboriginal Corporation (CUAC) was established in 1992 in answer to the need for Aboriginal advocacy in the Coomaditchie region in Illawarra. For over 30 years the corporation has provided support in the form of significant welfare and community initiatives, thriving arts and heritage programs, as well as active bush regeneration efforts.
The corporation has a distinct focus on community initiatives, with programs designed to connect Aboriginal people to the culture and heritage and sacred knowledge from our Elders. The corporation also a particular interest in other vulnerable community groups. These initiatives have included academic support for students in the region and support for better health outcomes for the community.
The network of artists at CUAC are established, having the privilege of learning from their chairperson Aunty Narelle Thomas alongside her sister, co-chairperson and collaborator Aunty Lorraine Brown. Together, the pair have worked tirelessly for the community and country for more than 25 years, whilst creating a truly prolific amount of public art together in the Illawarra region. Aunty Lorraine, speaking to the art style of bold colours and structure emblematic of their art describes it as “We are East Coast Saltwater People. My colours symbolise my life.”
In 2023, CUAC celebrated its 30th anniversary, having been incorporated in 1993. To mark this, an exhibition titled Coomaditchie; The Art of Place was created, curated by Tess Allan with assistance from Alinta Maguire, and was originally shown at the Wollongong Art Gallery. The exhibition features the history of the founding of the Coomaditchie settlement and the long campaign for Aboriginal housing in the region. Newly commissioned works made by Aunty Lorraine and Aunty Narelle are also featured with three large canvas works that speak to the three decades of community engagement. This exhibition also provides a space for works entitled Love Letters to Coomaditchie that includes community testimony to the significance of the land, people, and corporation in Coomaditchie. The exhibition is now showing at the Museum of Sydney until March 2025.
We are thrilled to have another organisation join us with a rich history of community, culture, and art, and we look forward to deadly opportunities to learn, support, and grow with them.
