We are all eternal spirits under one sky. My grandma told me how the spiritual universe is hierarchical. From the Old Man in the Sky down to Tjurri (mythical personages) and yanyi (spirits). The good ones are here to help us because we need divine inspiration in order to understand the world. They often appear in human form so they are familiar to us.

    Whilst having surgery I experienced the presence of luminous beings. Glowing with auras of light and floating above the operation they assured me everything was going to be all right. One of them had a white beard and was wearing a small hat. I thought.

“He looks like an Abrahamic figure”.

He read my thoughts and projected his into mine.

“ I am Melchizedek a priest of God Most High”.

He began operating on me with flames coming from his fingers but there was no pain and I was not arfaid. He said:

“You must be cleansed of your sin. The end of the order of procession is at hand and this is your only hope.”

Heb. 6:19 This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil,

Heb. 6:20 where Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.

    I have mixed heritage from my Aboriginal Australian mother and European father. Growing up without my father I was more exposed to my Aboriginal culture. However, Aboriginal Australians have incorporated Christianity and the Bible because they constitute the basis of Western civilisation. Incorporating it into my Aboriginal culture has allowed me to close the gaps in my own spiritual journey, left by the traumas of the past. The similarities appear through the universal truths of all cultures. For me, Christianity informs and relates to my Aboriginal cultural understanding of such truths.

    One day I wanted to do a painting but I couln’t afford a canvas. So I found some cardboard to paint on. I liked the effect. It reminded me of bark painting from Arnhem Land. I collect cardboard and sticks then pierce holes around the edges to lace on the sticks with twine. This method is what I term Urban Bark Painting. The process is something I value and it transforms the paintings into art objects. The idea was similar to Art Povera which emerged from post-war Italy in the 1950’s. The economies of many countries had fallen flat so the artists collected whatever they could to paint on. The same thing happened in Aboriginal Australian communities before any art centres were established in the 60’s and 70’s. Sheets of plywood and even corrugated iron, hammered flat, were used to create paintings.

    I was taught to paint by starting with a dark background to represent the void at the beggining of creation. Then the story builds up on the surface. Coroboree, translates as song and dance. Painting has also been an important part of our cultural ceremonies. Each medium is able to express things in a different way, creatiing a complete picture.

    I have taken inspiation from Renaissance artists like Van Eyck, Da Vinci and Raphael, who used the same techniques of painting from dark to light. I also use their technique of under painting with white and then glazing thin transparent colour over the top. This gives a luminous quality to my Angels. Then I fill in the backgound with my Aboriginal designs.

    My art work is best described as Traditional/Contemporary. Traditional in the use of colours and designs from my cultural heritage to form the background. Contemporary in the sense that I incorporate modern materials (such as acrylic paint and cardboard) and i use contemporary colours on my Angel icon. I like order in my painting, often with many preparation drawings. I sort out the composition and colour with notes and changes along the way. I wish to share my experience and spread the love that I recieved that day.