DESA 2001
DESIGN PRACTICE 2A
Group Research Task
Various Perspectives: Life as an Elder
Tutor: Duanfang Lu
Hye-JinPark(305113941)
Jane Kim(200415501)
John Kim(305111426)
This report aims to analyse the major concerns in life and major influences upon their surroundingsthat modern Aboriginal Elders make as Indigenous occupants in an urban precinct. Furthermore, to find the spatial perceptions those derive from the factors above.
Elders, with a capitalization, are a population of social and cultural significance in the Block. By tradition, they are ‘custodians’ of the Land and Aboriginal culture. They are always in the centre of decision making process in a community. They provide an access to treasured Dreamtime constitutions, stories of the tribe and spirituality. Thus they are revered among the younger people. However, issues in and out of the Blockshake the roots of fundamental beliefs of the Elders.
Elders and Natural Environment
Their connection to Land
The Elders in the Block are the centre in communicating the visions that their Land holds for them. Land has an immeasurable value and is transmitted to the rest of the world through oral recounts. “Our SacredLand has the Law for us.”[Coombs, p 34].Thus the Dreaming, the cultural and ethical teachings of the Elders in a historic context provide prospects for the Aboriginality. For example the Creation of Land by a female serpent is a recognition of women’s political role in the community. The Dreamtime involves respecting totems- a special way to relate themselves to a space.
Such ideal prospects of Aboriginal Elders often are misunderstood by the European community. The reliability of the Dreaming source, which is an accumulation of inherited knowledge and experience as delivered orally, comes under scrutiny by the Europeans. The Europeans criticise the Dreaming as “an aimless pondering”, having fully detached itself from the Reality.
Today’s conventions with land do not acknowledge the native title and the important Dreamtime protocols exerted by the Block’s Elders. The Redfern-Waterloo Authority pursues eagerly financial gain [Peter S]. The financial prospects for the Block in the eyes of the Government can only be established after getting rid of Block’s Indigenous population.
The notion of modern development on the Land holds a negative connotation.Aunt Yvonne Phillips calls her area “The Rock”.“When they hurt the land, they hurt the mind of the Elders”
Elders and Society
Fragmented Society
Traditionally Aboriginals have a strong sense of kinship. Tribes from different regions form a large circle of extended family through marriage outside the tribe. [Daughters of the Dreaming p 66]. Also there is a strong bond between family members. However, there have beenrandom relocations of Aboriginal people into the Block. They do not know “who’s who anymore” [Interview 3].The Block is now divided intogroups of kinfolks.“Having no connection to the influential Mundane Family”[Interview 2] will get you “no where to go after the project starts”.
Within the Block also the clash of values derived from diverse site specific knowledge is concurrent to the kinship issue. The Elders from different regions unhold different values. For eg. Aunt Rosy’s Kookaburra Dreaming reflects the women’s position. Consequently this diversity causes an internal fragmentation between the Elders at their communal decision making. Such issue betrays the significance of harmony exerted by the Aboriginal societies. “There is so much confusion in the place.”, claims Aunt Roseina.
Conformity
Conformity was done against their will. The Block’s unique diversity in the regional identities of its occupants is due to the forced removal of the Indigenous people from all over Australia. The acculturation by the religious and educational institutions forced them to “dress like them, use knives and folk like them”. Now they see a dwelling as “collective privatized spaces”. [Attwood, p97]
Also pursuing successful living in an urban area accounts for a reluctant conformity into the European values. The Block used to be a place for opportunities for education and employment.The Elders did not attempt to force-feed the Aboriginal values into the young minds for their success. This has costedtheir rights for land and culture.
Also the Elders constantlyaccept the new ideals in lifefor the better quality of life. An event atRedfern Community Centre involved modern Aboriginal music, food and leisure. They show their interest in pilates, yoga and relaxation sessions. The European guitar is now “a new symbol for Aboriginal culture”[interview 6].Aunt Rosy the Gum Leaf Player usesCD technology to show her knowledge about her Ancestors.
Some Elders do not conform but see theirpurpose of being in the world is to share her knowledge. Max Eulo, a Tribal Warrior Association educates the younger generation the art of survival out in the bush or in the battles between tribes. He holds smoking ceremony internationally. Aunt Roseina Boston is a distinguished Aboriginal artist, gum-leaf player, storyteller as well as a talented bush medicine woman. She claims“there were so many things that she didn’t learn about her Aboriginality yet.”
Elders and spatial/built environment
The concept of bounded space and built forms have been implemented to the life of the Aboriginals through the acculturation by missionary groups. To worsen the problem, their dynamic interactions with Land through physical activities for survival and spirituality are no longer possible in an urban precinct.
They have been forced to reside in a dwelling with many functional spaces, mostly built and tamed by the European owners in the past.The rigid organization of the time and space means limited opportunities for social gathering.The pursuit for money and education means the space for relaxed chatting has degenerated. They feel suffocated and surrounded by four walls and tall towers and cars.
The conditions of the dwellings are now the threats. There are “smashed up burnt-out houses” common in the Block. The problems cannot be resolved “unless you pull your own money out of the pocket.”Thelack of ventilation and limited sun exposure, the gaps within the building allow the spread of mildews, fungi as well as pest-carrying vermin. The sedentary lifestyle lengthens the exposure to them. These spacesare also aesthetically “disgraceful”and are not keeping up with the forward transitions in the public spaces within the Block.
The urban planning of the area gives them satisfaction as well as discomfort. The green environment which has been established is appreciated as the common ground for shared experience of the Land. However, the spatial recesses recently resulted from the government’s decision to rid of the drug activity made it easier for the police patrol. “Instead of drug dealers, we get policemen surveilancing us.” The watchful eyes upon them distress them.
CONCLUSION
The contributions that today’s Elders make on the community is not as active as it was, but still significant to appreciate their existence. The adaptations the Elders made throughout their lifetime has accumulated as experiences and influenced their unique perception of spatial environment. The three major environments, the natural, social and built environmentsin which the Elders operate as an integral part of the community have been examined. This study will be utilized in the future for the development of the design strategies as they are reflective of their wants and needs.
Bibliography
The methods of research include examining publications as well as undertaking verbal interviews and reviewing visual media. The interviews were conducted involved interviewees with a wide range of socio-economic status as well as religious obligations.
Publications
H.C. Coombs, M.M. Brandl, W.E. Snowdon,A Certain Heritage :programs for and by Aboriginal families in Australia, Canberra : Centre for Resource and Environmental Studies, AustralianNationalUniversity, 1983
Bell, Diane, Daughters of the Dreaming, Melbourne : McPhee Gribble ; Sydney : George Allen & Unwin, 1983.
Turner, David, Australian Aboriginal Social Organisation, Atlantic Highlands, N.J. : Humanities Press, 1980
Attwood, Bain, The Making of The Aborigines, Allen & Unwin, 1989
Reay, Marie, Aborigines now : new perspective in the study of Aboriginal communities, Sydney : Angus and Robertson, 1964
Museum of Sydney, Redfern : the Exhibition, Museum of Sydney, 2004
Web resources
AHC, Aboriginal Housing Company Social Plan, 2001,
Aboriginal Catholic Ministry, Clarence Slockey Visits to the Block 2001,
ABC, Australia Adlib: Aunt Rose Plays Gum-Leaf,
Verbal Interviews
The following people were interviewed,
Indigenous Australians
Aunt Yvonne Phillips at the Holden Street Hill Song Group
Uncle Ralph,
Uncle Max Eulo
Aunt Roseina Boston
Uncle James
1 female Aboriginal visitor at the R.C.C. Birthday party
2 anonymous local male participants.
Non-Indigenous Participants
John
David
2 anonymous local female participants
APPENDIX
INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPTS
Interview 1
Aunt Yvonne Phillips, a Pentecostal enthusiast who actively leads religious meetings, was spoken with briefly prior to the meeting down at Holden Street.
Q. I acknowledge that Aboriginal culture respects the elements of Land and Nature. How do you feel about the relationship between the Block and the people down here?
A. Strongly. I dont call it the Black anymore. I would like to call this place ‘The Rock’. The word ‘Block’.. it sounds as if you have built something artificial on it. See, we do not see Land as some place you build things on. It has to be appreciated as it is. We belong to the Rock.
Q What is your notion of The Rock, with its built forms?
A. This place I see as a one big space shared by all the members of community. You see, they are greedy, those people out there. They want to keep the land to themselves. They even took our language. But we are not. We share it among us.
Q. Certainly. But the built, enclosed spaces are rather individual spaces. So I guess when it is night, you will all retreat to your spaces for sleeping and etc. Do you see this ‘sharing of land’ matter as an activity that only happens during the day?
A. (hesitates) It is a very complex matter, really.
Q. Then we can perceive The Rock as a big space that is built up of little individual spaces?
A. Yes and no. You probably have to ask others on that one. Nowadays it is more likely. These modern values.
Q. Also during my research I have discovered this place is a sort of a mecca, where different individuals from all over Australia have gathered to live together. Do you think this adds to the problem that has been suggested before?
A. Yes. We all come from different places. It sometimes is frustrating. We all have different ideas. Maybe some people may not agree with ‘sharing the land as a whole’
A. It seems like a lot of you are engaged in some form of Christianity. Do the Elders socialize often through religious activities?
Q. Yes, definitely. In fact we are having a meeting held down here today. The majority of us are Christians. Me myself is Pentecostal and there is a large number of Catholics too.
Q Thank you for your time.
A. Have a good day. God Bless You.
Interview 2 :Conversations at St Vicent’s Catholic Church, Redfern
Convo 1
(All the members of the Parish gathered at the front wall and all began to write the line)
“Crucified on Side Walk the Aboriginal Christ Should be Free in His Own Church Among Aboriginal People.”
Jane: Why do all the members of this parish write this line with a chalk?
Lady in Pink: We write this every day almost, since the new priest down here wipes it away. He is a Neo-cat fundamentalist and he doesn’t approve of the Father Ted Kennedy’s teachings. So he is not as active at helping out the lives of the Aboriginal people.
David: Down in Canberra, I have seen a building that was designed and built by the Aborinal community. Now that is an ultimate marking of Aboriginality in the area.
Jane: I actually heard there are a lot of Aboriginal catholics. I see that there aren’t a lot of Aboriginal people today?
Lady in Pink: Oh, there are certainly a many but, we have to understand their cultures and values. They call themselves Catholics and this chapel is a strong basis in their lives, a very sacred place. But, they do not have this idea of attending service, really. They see the church as a place they can come and go whenever they’re in need.
Jane: Is church service a main means of socialization for the people down in the Block?
David: It is more than socialisation. This place gives them support in life. So we make sure we are a family and we try to support each other.
Convo 2
An Aboriginal Lady: What will happen to the rest of them? Only people related to the Mundane would get their places down in the Block wouldn’t they? That’s bloody unfair.
An Aboriginal Man: Yeah, only 62 houses, they [Aboriginal Housing Company] are slowly forcing the people to leave. You only get a house if you have a connection.
The Mundane family owns that place. But they don’t to nothing for the people in the Block. The houses there are not looked after properly. They are all running down, as you see. Even “Tony Mundane” says he wouldn’t live there if the Block is reconstructed and he is the president of ALP. You can’t get them to fix up your place unless you pull out your own money out the pocket and give it to them.
They [Aboriginal Housing Company] will be building townhouses there. Who’s gonna live in townhouses when you can build smaller units there so none of the people in the Block have to leave? At first they said that they’re gonna build Elder’s housing down at the Block. Now they can’t do it so they’re gonna build townhouses. Still better than the big tower the government is going to build. But I don’t quite like that [AHC] idea either.
Jane: It seems like let alone the government scheme, even the Aboriginal Housing Company project is a pretty controversial issue. Then what would happen to the unrelated?
David: Yes, Aboriginal people have this notion of a very extended family. In the traditional Aboriginal life, a girl from Tribe A has to marry a boy from Tribe B and another girl from Tribe B has to marry a boy from another and so on. Then there is a big circle of tribes, and everybody’s related. But in Redfern this no longer happens. Only a small extended family [The Mundanes] exists. Now there are concerns about intermarrying since they are marrying their kins.
Convo 3
An Aboriginal Lady: You know darling, if you’re building a centre for Aboriginal elders. Then can you remember to put two toilets in there, one on downstairs, and one upstairs. And please put a very wide verandah. The old buildings don’t have that and I can’t even see the outside.
Jane: You mean you want a bigger exposure so that you can touch, feel and hear the surrounding nature?
Aboriginal Lady: Exactly.
Jane: I see, you feel very strongly with the Land. How do you compare the open, dynamic interaction with Land with the enclosure you feel when you’re in the chapel? The kind of solemn feeling in the church, how does that compare?
Aboriginal Lady: It is pretty unnatural. But you’ve got to know we’ve been forced to attend things and live like this wit our cultures taken for the last 40-50 years. They told us to be here.
Jane: Then I guess it would be quite troublesome to go back reenact your life as an Aboriginal with the old values?
Aboriginal Lady: Yes but we still feel strongly to Land for sure.
Interview 3
Ralph, John. Ralph is an Aboriginal Elder, with a realistic view on the Block is currently a constituent member of the Redfern’s St Vincents Catholic Church. John is a White but a companion of Ralph who has joined Ralph on his way to the Aboriginal medical Centre. Both are in their late 40’s.
John: they re gonna get rid of the aboriginals and send them to the country then why do they build the medical centre? The same with the community centre. What would the city boy do in the country? They’ve already put the country boy in the city.
Ralph: It’s all about the money.
Interviewer: I see that, there’s a big irony in that.
J: They are saying that they’re gonna build the houses and all that. But look at what they’re doing, now with low maintenance.
I: You being in the urban precinct makes you see the importance of enclosure?
J: You can’t put Ralph in the country
I: I am already aware of the ignorance presented by the European community who are seeing you as people really feeling comfortable exposed to the openness. But in reality you are not like that, right?
J: I am white but its their country. they’ve been here before me. But they are treated like dirt, as far as I am concerned.They don’t want to know about the great ideas people like Ralph have. If you stand out and speak out you get locked up….