A Black Card cultural tour is perfect for anyone interested in furthering their understanding of Brisbane’s indigenous culture and history.
Guests on a Black Card walking tour are taken through the heart of Meeanjin (Brisbane City) by an Aboriginal guide who shares their cultural insights and the stories that have been passed down from generation to generation. This experience allows guests to see Brisbane through a different lens.
Managing Director, Mundanara Bayles, her sister Yarraka and many family members provide first-hand and authentic knowledge in an informal, warm and culturally inclusive way.
The Cultural Precinct Walking Tour lasts three hours, starting with a didgeridoo welcome at the Yarning Circle at the State Library of Queensland, a tour of the artworks in the State Library and GOMA, including amazing collections of Aboriginal public art, sculpture and exhibitions.
Brisbane is home to some of the country’s best indigenous street art, many of which go un-noticed by locals and visitors. One of the highlights of the Cultural Precinct Tour is an up-close viewing of an incredible piece of street art by Australian artist, Matt Adnate. Matt’s painting under the Merivale Railway Bridge depicts an aboriginal baby named Bella. Matt’s aim to capture the stories and emotions of each subject he paints is perfectly encapsulated in this portrait, and its one that few people even know exist.
Another wonderful and somewhat surprising find on the Black Card Cultural Tour is the Papunya Collection – a free public art display at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre. This collection is a legacy of the 1988 Brisbane World Expo, as the paintings in this collection were originally commissioned for display at Expo 88. Painted by 20 indigenous artists from the Papunya settlement, 250km west of Alice Springs, these paintings are the origins of the particular style of desert art referred to as ‘dot-painting’.
