Melbourne’s Newest Library narrm ngarrgu Opens With a Suite of New Kulin Artwork

Leading Aboriginal artist Maree Clarke has unveiled a suite of new public artworks at narrm ngarrgu Library and Family Services.

Lord Mayor Sally Capp, City of Melbourne Councillor Jamal Hakim and Maree Clarke were onsite to officially open the City of Melbourne’s newest community hub in the Queen Victoria Market precinct.

The library and family services centre is the first of its kind dedicated to expressing the importance and impact of Kulin knowledge in Melbourne. Clarke’s immersive artworks at the heart of the site tell its First Nations story, inviting reflection and learning about Kulin culture.

Displayed alongside them is a collection of artworks and heritage items from the Council’s Art and Heritage Collection, curated by dr megan evans, that continue the cultural and historical story.

The collection includes new commissions by Wergaia/Wemba Wemba artist Kelly Koumalatsos and Ngarigu artist Peter Waples-Crowe, photography by Clarke of the Melbourne 1990s NAIDOC protests, and works by Josh Muir, Leah King-Smith, Stephen Rhall, Hayley Millar Baker, Clinton Naina, Brian Martin, Naomi Hobson, Kent Morris, Lisa Waup, Sonja Hodge, Blackgin Georgia Macguire and Julie Gough.

narrm ngarrgu also features a public artwork by Melbourne-based artist Rose Nolan that speaks to the changing-over of the site from its original form to a place that both honours the Kulin people and welcomes a diverse community.