Digital artwork by Gumatj artist and filmmaker, Gutiŋarra Yunupiŋu – part of the The Mulka Project Indigenous media unit – will feature on oOh!media’s Bourke Street 3D anamorphic (3DA) billboard for one week in a partnership between the outdoor media provider and the National Gallery.
This marks the first time a 3DA site has been activated with a work by a First Nations artist in Australia.
The six-storey high Bourke Street billboard is one of oOh!media’s full motion 3DA sites, and the largest outdoor animated site in Australia.
Yunupiŋu’s two minute artwork, Bäru Gurtha, which transports the artist from North East Arnhem Land to Naarm (Melbourne’s CBD), will premiere at 5:30pm on Monday 3 June for a 25 minute showing. It will then feature on the billboard once every hour from 3 to 9 June, expected to reach an average estimated 100,000 pedestrians who pass the site each day.
“We are passionate about taking art beyond the walls of the Gallery and our partnership with oOh!media is a great example of finding new platforms to share art with the public,” said National Gallery director, Dr. Nick Mitzevich.
Yunupiŋu, who was born deaf, collaborated with his team at The Mulka Project to create the 3D digital artwork, incorporating his clan’s designs, totems and his cultural Yolŋu sign language to communicate their connection.
As a member of the Gumatj clan, Yunupiŋu holds deep reverence for the Ancestral Crocodile, Bäru, and bearer of the Ancestral Fire, Gurtha. His artwork depicts the pivotal ancestral narrative of the moment Bäru first carried Gurtha from Maḏarrpa clan land to his Gumatj homeland of Birany’birany.
Head of creative at oOh!media, Josh Gurgiel, said it was “an honour for our teams to work together to bring Gutiŋarra Yunupiŋu’s powerful artwork out of the gallery and into such a prominent public space on our premium ‘The Bourke’ site.
“This collaboration highlights the innovative possibilities of digital art and 3D Anamorphic technology. We’re thrilled to provide a platform that connects cultural heritage and storytelling of Australia’s First peoples with modern technology, engaging audiences in a truly unique way.”
The Mulka Project is a collective of Yolŋu digital artists based out of the Buku-Larrŋggay Mulka Art Centre in Yirrkala, Yolŋu Country in North-Eastern Arnhem Land. The Project is dedicated to sustaining and protecting Yolŋu cultural knowledge under the leadership of its community elders. A production house and digital library, it creates and disseminates audio-visual cultural resources throughout the Yolŋu community.
“The Mulka Project is a dynamic collective of artists who work with cutting-edge digital technologies and Gutiŋarra Yunupiŋu has created an exciting new work about his culture that takes full advantage of the 3DA full motion site,” said Mitzevich.
In February 2020, oOh!media partnered with the National Gallery to activate its gender equity initiative with the Know My Name Outdoor Art Event. Works by 45 Australian female artists from the national collection featured on close to 3,000 classic and digital billboards around Australia, reaching over 12 million people.
Josh Gurgiel, head of oOh!media’s creative and innovation hub POLY, recently spoke to Mediaweek following the OOH business’ recent burst of outdoor advertising creativity.
“I like to think that out-of-home advertising is just public space art that happens to be sponsored by your brand,” said Gurgiel.
See also: oOh!media & Google partner with gallery to showcase future of out-of-home