Special tram celebrates Kaurna community’s living culture

Monday, 21 May 2018

An Adelaide Metro tram decorated with contemporary Aboriginal art will be in operation from Sunday 20 May for a 12-week period to mark and support National Reconciliation and NAIDOC weeks.

Designed by DPTI employee, Aboriginal landscape architect and visual artist Paul Herzich, and facilitated by the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure, the Kardi Munaintya (Emu Dreaming) tram wrap was initiated in 2010 as a living work of art, symbolising the importance of Aboriginal art and culture in a contemporary setting.

The design recognises and celebrates the diversity of Aboriginal cultures in South Australia by acknowledging the main Aboriginal nations that are located within the state. In the design, all of the tram stops are illustrated as circular meeting place symbols and Kardi (emu) footprints are shown moving across the Kaurna/Adelaide landscape.

National Reconciliation Week is held around Australia every year to learn about and celebrate the histories, cultures and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia. National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee (NAIDOC) Week, also held every year, is an opportunity to recognise the contributions that Indigenous Australians make to our country and society.

For further information about National Reconciliation Week visit www.reconciliation.org.au/national-reconciliation-week/ and NAIDOC Week visit http://www.naidoc.org.au/.