nhana - to see
nhawul - to look
ngaiana/ngai - know
imago - hope
yepenyepuk - together

Collaborating with Neil Morris (bull-roarer, clap-stick and spoken word), a Yorta Yorta man, and with creative assistance and sound design from Christopher Laurence ‘… and the ships arrived … Yepenyepuk’ is an experimental sound piece painting a sonic picture of the past 300 years of our history and beyond. Running for precisely 11:11 this is the soundtrack to Mind the Gap.

Beginning with the bullroarer, a sound of Bunjil, the creator. The land is strong, the lore is strong and the people are strong.

From the horizon like high impact warfare the jackhammer introduces the arrival of the ships. The reach of the colony spreads. Generations of young children are stolen.

There is Vietnam, there is the Internet, there are clouds of information, and there is severe manipulation.

And then things become bizarre, the walls close in to some kind of shock treatment policy. For a time there is chaos - cultural, political, environmental, spiritual chaos. There’s a landslide and everything just disappears into an endless chasm. All stops.

Running down a river in whirlpools of understanding we move into some hopeful future where we can be together in peace.

...and the ships arrived...Yepenyepuk

An interview with Kokatha elders Aunty Sue Coleman-Haseldine & Gordon Franklin discussing Woomera in South Australia. Interviews recorded in Oslo, Norway and in Narrm (Melbourne), Australia.

This recording is part of the exhibition 'Woomera' by Kristian Laemmle-Ruff.

Munda Yumadoo Iliga (Leave the land as it is) - Aunty Sue Coleman-Haseldine & Gordon Franklin

Interview on ABC Radio Alice Springs with Paul Serratore July 2018 about Woomera, an exhibition at Araluen Arts Centre in Mparntwe / Alice Springs.

Interview on ABC Radio Alice Springs with Paul Serratore

Kristian Laemmle-Ruff is an photographic artist based in Melbourne, Australia. 