HIG engagement of local indigenous artist Melinda Luscombe
As part of our inclusion of first nations people, Harrison Infrastructure Group (HIG) commissioned local Indigenous artist Melinda Luscombe to design an artwork reflective of the history, mission, vision and values of HIG. In conjunction with the commencement of NAIDOC celebrations, Melinda presented the artwork to HIG on Monday.
Melinda stated “As a proud Gomeroi woman and Indigenous artist it gives me great pride to work with people to transform their values, purpose and meaning into an art piece that portrays those personal aspects through traditional story telling.”
Melinda provided the following statement in respect to the inspiration of the art piece. “Working alongside HIG it was evident that although there are many physical locations where the company it based, the connection between these bases is very strong.
The large red oxide circles represent these physical locations of the bases which include Toowoomba, Brisbane, Bundaberg, Rockhampton, Roma and the infancy of the Sunshine Coast base. In traditional Aboriginal art these concentric circles represent places of gathering, areas in which tribal business was discussed, similar to the bases in which HIG practice their business. These bases are connected with songlines which represent the physical journey of travelling between meeting places, much like the roads that connect the various business locations.
The twenty-seven warm white coloured meeting places represent the twenty-seven years of business of HIG. I felt that including such a milestone was important to highlight and celebrate. In connecting these years of business through very small intricate songlines I have represented the many hours of travel and communication that have taken place over this extensive amount of time. The sectioning of the art piece due to the many songlines also gives a nod to work that HIG do with developing subdivisions of various lands.
The small moss and olive-green line work depicts native grasses in the many lands in which the company is based and works with. The various shades of the line work represent the various stages and cycles of development within these regions, much like older vegetation growth being replaced with need shoots and growth. This represents the new ideas and new business practices, even new technologies replacing older versions.
I have represented acacia blossoms with warm white centres and yellow oxide petals to highlight the growth and prosperity of the company. Flowers cannot bloom without out strong branches and trunks. Business cannot thrive without a well-supported team on all levels.
Blue grey curved line work illustrates the waterways in which HIG work with and maintain whilst undoing various projects. Water also highlights the importance of being able to adapt to unpredictable outcomes.
The various sized and coloured dot work represents the earth and soils on the various lands in which the company work on and with. The difference in shades of soil sometimes in short distances of each other is truly amazing. As we have different coloured soils that make up our country, we also have different ethnicities in our workforces that work alongside each other.
The curved dot work highlighting a version of the HIG’s logo colours represents the traditional imagery for rainbows. Rainbows are often seen after storms and dark periods. Much like rough times that we go through as individuals and in business we often feel that the difficult times will consume us and that they will never end. However, if we persevere through the storms and the difficult times they will eventually pass and the rewards that are often presented after these difficult times are appreciated and valued more.”
Tony Zimmerle from HIG stated “It has been a great pleasure to work with Melinda in developing our story and her representation of it through this artwork. Melinda has captured many aspects of our organisation’s history and future vision in a thoughtful and positive way. The artwork will be on display at our Toowoomba Office and will certainly provide a point of discussion and reflection”.
