Yiwarra Kuju, which means “one road” in the Martu language, describes the Australian Canning Stock Route, a track that was developed on Aboriginal homelands as mining and pastoral industries expanded in Western Australia. Yiwarra Kuju was the theme of the first exhibition to open in the year 2016 at the spacious interior exhibition gallery of the Nubuke Foundation, located in the green leafy suburb of East Legon in Accra.

The exhibition was organized by the Nubuke Foundation with the support of the Australian High Commission in Ghana. It opened on Tuesday, 27th of January, and was scheduled to end on February 16th, 2016.

Yiwarra Kuju tells the story of the route's impact and the importance of the country around it, interpreted through indigenous eyes and voices. According to the National Museum of Australia, curators of the exhibition, the “one road” concept was used to bind the art, people, and story of the Western Desert together, with the Canning Stock Route as the meeting point and as the cross-cultural basis for developing an understanding of Aboriginal Country and the shared history that occurred within it.

On display were artworks from various Aboriginal artists from Western Australia, made available by the National Museum of Australia, alongside works by Isaac Opoku, a young Ghanaian artist working with the Nubuke Foundation. Some of the Aboriginal artworks exhibited included Minyipuru, which tells a story of seven sisters; Kunkun, which narrates the story of the artists and their surroundings; and Kiriwirri, which is the name of the clan to which the artist belongs, among many others.

Opoku’s role in this exhibition was to develop a similar idea to create works within the Ghanaian cultural context, inspired by Australian Aboriginal art. He did this in collaboration with selected pupils from the La-Bawaleshie Junior High School.

One of the works Opoku created was called Akwantuo, which translates as “The Voyage” in English. It essentially deals with man’s interaction with the natural and spiritual realms. The piece draws on a combination of various Aboriginal symbols to tell a story of man’s journey through life, death, and the afterlife.

Another Opoku piece, Denkyem Asa, which translates as “Crocodile’s Dance,” talks about change and transition. It communicates the idea that Opoku had to necessarily adapt his thinking and approach to creating art in order to fully absorb and understand the meanings and aesthetics of Australian Aboriginal art. The works were created on wood with acrylic paints.

Aboriginal art is based on stories of the indigenous community for which the art was created. This fosters cultural revival in an exceptionally meaningful way for native people. Hence, art viewers are not just thrilled by the beauty and spirituality of Aboriginal artworks but are also marveled by the rich cultural information communicated through the iconographies and dots employed.
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Nubuke Foundation, Accra 2024