During the immersive Doontanboro Kura exhibition, four evening events were held to give visitors the opportunity to hear from the Elders and artists involved in the project and dive deeper into the artworks and the stories behind them. An absolute highlight of these evening events was the opportunity to see the Wagoorjup and Alliwah animations outdoors, projected onto the Yagan Mia | Wireless Hill Museum building.

Doontanboro Kura exhibition launch

This large and joyous celebration took place on the evening of 4 October 2024, in the tranquil outdoor spaces of Yagan Mia | Wireless Hill and within the Yagan Mia | Wireless Hill Museum. Visitors were ushered in with a smoking ceremony by Terry Morich and a Welcome to Country by Geri Hayden, both Place Names Melville participants. 

Various dignitaries spoke, including the City of Melville Mayor, Katy Mair, and the Member for Bateman, Kim Giddens MLA, and project team members from Melville, Moodjar and CAN. Reflections from key Place Names Melville participants and Elders followed, taking visitors behind the scenes of the project.

Attendees enjoyed food from a local Indigenous catering company and the dramatic large-scale projections on the building exterior of the Wagoorjup and Alliwah screen works.

Fireside Friday: Yarning with Elders

Offering the Melville community an opportunity to connect directly with Elders who were involved in the Place Names Melville project, Fireside Friday: Yarning with Elders proved popular with members of the broader Melville community. Held on the evening of 11 October 2024, Fireside Friday provided a safe and intimate space to gather around the fire with Elders and hear stories of Noongar boodja.

Mapping Boodja: Learn more about the ancient Noongar names in Melville

Taking place Thursday 24 October, Mapping Boodja took visitors on a guided tour of the large-scale map created during the Place Names Melville project, led by City of Melville project coordinator Noelene Mantellato. Following the extensive tour, attendees were divided into groups to engage with a large-scale replica of the map, where they tested their memories on the meanings and locations of the ancient Noongar placenames.

Closing celebration and artist talk 

An unseasonably cold night on Saturday 26 October 2024 didn’t deter the enthusiastic crowd who braved the chill winds at Yagan Mia | Wireless Hill to celebrate the Place Names Melville exhibition Doontanboro Kura one last time. The highlight of the evening was a lively and entertaining artist conversation. Facilitated with joy and humour by Place Names Melville lead artist Natalie Scholtz, artists Zali Morgan, Bruce Denny and Kamsani Bin Salleh (Kambarni) shared their experiences of collaborating with the community on this project. With the gallery opening throughout the evening and the animations projected on the museum’s exterior for the last time, this event was a fitting way to farewell Doontaboro Kura.

Pictured top: 'Doontanboro Kura | Melville Waters Dreaming' exhibition // credit Hugh Sando