Borroloola artist Ryhia Dank is the name behind the 2022 NAIDOC poster encapsulating the theme Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up!
The Gudanji/Wakaja woman’s creation, Stronger, captured the essence of this year’s theme according to National NAIDOC Committee Co-Chairs, Shannan Dodson and John Paul Janke.
“I am so excited to be this year’s NAIDOC Poster Competition Winner,” she said.
Ms Dank created Stronger not long after first reading the theme.
“I knew straight away I wanted to do a graphic piece centred around our flags with text highlighting what we have been through and are still fighting for,” she said.
The digital artwork is completely in black and white – with the exclusion of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags. Ms Dank has included powerful political messages including Blak Lives Matter, White Australia has a Blak History, Stolen Wages, Land Rights and the theme, Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up!
Ms Dank said creating a monochrome poster allowed the messages to have more focus and power.
Raised on a cattle station in Borroloola in the Gulf of Carpentaria, Ms Dank now calls Melbourne home.
Gudanji/Wakaja woman and 2022 NAIDOC poster winner Ryhia Dank. Source: Supplied
Not only an esteemed painter, Ms Dank is a design graduate and a graphic designer.
When the first wave of COVID-19 lockdowns hit Melbourne, Ms Dank was visiting family in the Northern Territory. Finding herself stuck, she began creating.
In May of 2020, Ms Dank launched her brand, Nardurna.
“Gudanji/Wakaja people told stories through pattern and design and that is what I am doing. I call my storying Nardurna. It means woman in my language,” she said.
Although Stronger is a creation for the nation, Ms Dank has woven in honouring to her culture and her family.
Ryhia Dank's creation Stronger, the official 2022 NAIDOC poster. Source: Supplied
“In this artwork, I have little bits of me and my family, I have included a crocodile for my late granny. She was one of the strongest women I know and was never afraid to speak her mind and stand up for family and Country,” she said.
“I have also included my family's dancing stick, this is present as a reminder that we will always have our Country, Kin and Culture.”
“There are also symbols to represent us as a community. People gathered around a camp, a spear and woomera to represent our strength, water, trees, animal tracks and non-human entities to show our connection to Country.”
Ms Dank’s artwork was selected from over 300 entries from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists across the country.
As the 2022 winner, Ms Dank receives a cash prize and will attend the 2022 National NAIDOC Award ceremony in Melbourne in July as an official guest of the NAIDOC Committee.
