Swans Mural

Swan Districts Football Club’s recent NAIDOC celebration included launching a QR code for the club’s Aboriginal mural.  

The large mural, designed and painted by local artist and proud Whadjuk-Yuet-Ballardong man Kevin Bynder, is an ancient satellite map showing the places of significance along the Derbarl Yerrigan near Steel Blue Oval Bassendean. It serves as an important cultural reference point and educational tool.

The map includes significant places that have transpired over thousands of years including massacre sites, burial sites, meeting locations, camp sites, fishing spots, as well where expecting mothers would go to give birth.

The QR Code helps bring the mural to life. You can use your phone to receive information on key locations in the mural. Next season the club will try and include audio descriptions of these important places provided by local Elders. 

“The mural is bringing our local historical stories to life. It’s important we understand what happened here in the past so we can pass it on to the next generation”, said Swan Districts Chief Executive Jeff Dennis.    

Swan Districts and Steel Blue Oval Bassendean is represented in the map as a Swan inside an oval using the symbol for a meeting place. Other sites include:

• Areas of trade between the Whadjuk and Ballardong people, during the Makuru and Djilba seasons (as it happens, most of the football season) 
• The resting location of the Waugal, and a number of smaller, but still significant waterways created by it 
• “The Point” which is where mothers would go to give birth. This is the birthplace of many Elders, and Kevin’s grandfather was also born there.

The mural design has also been incorporated into the club jumper designs used this year by its WAFLW teams for Reconciliation Week and WAFL teams for NAIDOC.

The launch of the QR code was attended by (from left to right); Peter Hodyl, Swan Districts Football Club President; George Hayden, Director of Goomarin Services and Associate Lecturer for Curtin University who provided the Welcome to Country on the day; Rikki Stocks, Town of Bassendean Senior Community Development Officer; Wanita Bartholomeusz, Swans Aboriginal Advisory Committee (SAAC) Chair, Hon. Lorna Harper MLC, Member for the East Metropolitan Region; Hon Dr Tony Buti MLA, Minister for Education, Aboriginal Affairs, Citizenship and Multicultural Interests; Kat Bow and Sherri Bagshaw, SAAC members.