[shuttertalk]

Hi all, I'll be taking over the photo assignments for the next couple of fortnights while our beloved Matthew is on holidays. As our Assignmentator is heading down under to Australia though, I tried to think up of a fitting topic for this fortnight's assignment.

In Indigenous Australian culture, Dreamtime is a mythical concept, and refers to "a part of aboriginal culture which explains the origins and culture of the land and its people." and "It is the story of things that have happened, how the universe came to be, how human beings were created and how the Creator intended for humans to function within the cosmos.".

In the same vein, a "Dreaming" in Aboriginal culture is often an explanation or "story" of how something began or was created. Often, Australian aboriginals depicted these stories as abstract forms of art, as illustrated here:

For this assignment, let us explore the abstract that we see in the world around is, and further delve into the meanings and dreamings that we can draw from those images. I invite you to accompany your pictures with any musings, thoughts, reflections that come to you when you ponder your visions...


p.s. Here's more inspiration and ideas if you need it.

p.p.s. Sorry if this assignment seems really vague, but let's leave it open to interpretation. I really like this one as an example of what I mean:


©Lorni Hyland, "borrowed" from from here.

This design is about lessons we can learn from the Dolphin. It shows that we, like the dolphins, must have a balance of life.

Outside the serious survival issues of life, we should take time to enjoy the simple things that are around us, such as family, the sun and the waves.

Above the waves
Dolphins, frolicking and dancing in the waves. The Dolphin takes the time to play and enjoy its surroundings.

Below the waves
On a more serious note, below the waves, the Dolphin's main issue is survival. It must hunt, nurture and feed its young and avoid predators to survive. The animals pictured in the 'bar' represent the ecological relationship between the Dolphin and its marine surroundings.

[matthew]

Jules, thanks for taking care of the assignments.

The first photo that I thought of was this one:



These stacked rocks are diminutive copies of the inuksuit of the Canadian north. The Inuit created these monoliths on the tundra by stacking and balancing large rocks. Inuksut (singular) means "something that performs the function of a person" and they are used as landmarks to point the way for navigation across the largely featureless tundra. It's used on flags for the northern first nations, and a it forms the logo for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

This may be a fairly literal interpretation of Dreamtime, but this is creating its own story for Canada. This is quickly becoming the new symbol of the nation for aboriginal art and tourist shops. When I come to Australia, I'll be carrying two of them as gifts. One is made of stacked glass, and is a thoroughly modern interpretation of an ancient symbol. The other is carved from a block of soapstone, which is a traditional medium for the inuit. Old and new, and for travelers -- it's fitting.