16 December, 2022
'Welcome to Country' artwork for Kilcoy Kindy
KILCOY mother of three and indigenous artist Brooke Perry has donated a piece to C&K Kilcoy Community Kindergarten, featuring the handprints of each child in the 2022 class and their own Welcome to Country verse.
The C&K kindy has a very special place in Brooke’s heart after her mother, herself and now her three children have attended.
When Brooke went to the kindy 24 years ago, her mother also donated a piece of artwork, which still hangs on the toilet block, and now she has decided to continue on this legacy with the Welcome to Country piece.
“I started doing art as a way to feel more connected to my country and people,” she said.
“I want to continue this tradition and share with others to preserve our culture.”
Brooke said one of the teachers wrote up a Welcome to Country with the kids which was easier for them to say and understand.
“It gets the kids to think about the traditional owners of the land,” she said.
“They all seem to enjoy learning about indigenous culture.”
Brooke has grown up doing indigenous art, being taught by her parents who painted murals at both Kilcoy State Primary and High Schools.
“Now when I’m home with the kids it’s something good to do with them,” she said.
By using visual art as a vehicle for the maintenance and transmission of culture, Brooke is encouraging her children to carry on the tradition and has taken to teaching them the meaning of certain symbols and patterns.
“Usually, I’m painting with at least one child sitting on my lap,” she said.
After starting to sell some pieces on her Facebook page ‘Brooke Perry Indigenous Art’, Brooke said she has received a lot of interest from other kindergartens in the area.
“Might end up with one in every day-care,” she said.
“I’m just so happy I’ve found something that I love doing and other people like too.”
