Time travelling with Bronwyn Bancroft

Aboriginal culture is the oldest continuous living culture in the world, kept alive by generations past and present for the future through yarns and storytelling, song and dance, symbols and patterns.

These shape Aboriginal identity and link Aboriginal people with their ancestral beliefs and cultural inheritance. Traditions preserve Aboriginal cultural heritage and knowledge and keep the spirits of ancestors alive.

Artist and designer Bronwyn Bancroft, , a proud member of the Djanbun Clan of the Bundjalung Nation, writer, scholar, illustrator, mentor and one of the founders of the Boomalli Aboriginal Artists Co-operative in 1987, is deeply connected to Country. In her artwork, Time Travellers 2, purchased by the City of Sydney, Bronwyn shares her own connection to Country through treasured Aboriginal artefacts and stone tools, left to her by her mentor, Uncle Pat Bancroft which unite her family today with ancient Aboriginal cultural traditions.

Join the City of Sydney’s civic collection curator Margaret Betteridge in conversation with Bronwyn Bancroft as they explore the stories behind Time Travellers 2 and the inspiration for her creative practice.

Presented as part of NAIDOC Week 2022: Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up! With the City of Sydney Library.

Dr Bronwyn Bancroft is a proud Bundjalung woman and artist.

Bronwyn started creating from the age of 7, growing up in Tenterfield in northern NSW. Her professional career as an artist began following her graduation from the Canberra School of Arts in 1980. Her career has included national and international exhibitions, having been acquired by all major Australian galleries, state libraries and private collections.

Bronwyn’s contribution to Indigenous children’s literature is immense and includes the publication of 43 books.

A founding member of Boomalli Aboriginal Artists Co-operative established in 1987, Bronwyn has been the co-operative's volunteer senior strategist since 2009. Bronwyn also offers her extensive expertise as a board member/director of the Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience, the Australian Society of Authors and the Commonwealth Bank Indigenous Advisory Council.

Bronwyn has a Diploma of Visual Arts from Canberra School of Art, 2 Masters degrees (Studio Practice and Visual Art) and a Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Sydney.

In 2020, Bronwyn received the University of Sydney’s Alison Bush Graduate Medal for her contribution to the Indigenous community and is the recipient of the inaugural NSW Aboriginal Creative Fellowship at the State Library of NSW.

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This event will be Auslan interpreted. To access the Auslan interpreting, you will need to use Zoom on a computer.