Yennaga Yettang / Come See is a mesmerising video projection that reflects women’s powerful connection to country and their role as knowledge holders of customs and traditions.
Projected on the wall of Mildura’s newly restored Powerhouse building as the sun goes down over the Murray River each day, the artwork features images and sounds of the river and surrounding country overlayed with voices of local women.
It was shot on Latje Latje and Ngintait Country and escorts the audience through the local landscape to find a place of connection. It moves from daylight to dusk, capturing the ambience of the river, along with the clouds, fire, smoke and trees, accompanied by a choral arrangement from a local girls and women and interspersed with the natural soundtrack of birdsong.
An aerial view of Yennaga Yettang screening at sunset.This remarkable work was created by internationally renowned artist Maree Clarke. A Mutti Mutti, Yorta Yorta, Wamba Wamba, Boonwurrung woman from Mildura, Maree is a multi-disciplinary artist whose career as an artist, curator and artistic director spans 30 years.
Her multi-media installations include photography, sculpture, and video, and explore the customary ceremonies and rituals of her ancestors. She uses traditional materials, such as possum skin for cloaks, kangaroo teeth for necklaces, river reeds and echidna quills, along with more contemporary materials.
Maree’s work has featured in many exhibitions across Australia, with a major exhibition, 'Ancestral Memories', at the National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne.
For this artwork, Maree worked with Latje Latje elder and cultural adviser Aunty Janine Wilson, with filming by Jen Douglas and sound editing by Merilyn Air.
Catherine Threlfall worked with local young people – Ember Baylin, Sofia Falivene, Niamh McClaer, Liana McClaer, Freya McClaer, Hope Retallick, Raya Robb, Alice Siale and Lucia Zara – to compose and perform a hypnotic choral arrangement, inspired by the film imagery.
The final layer of the artwork includes the ‘whispers’ of older women – Anna Calipari, Freda Chagellis, Edisa Nkurunziza and Emerita Southee. The outcome is a woven narrative of women’s voices, speaking from generations, and connecting to place.
Artist Maree Clarke taking in the landscape at Merbein as dusk falls.Yennaga Yettang is projected on to the wall at Powerhouse Place, Mildura’s original powerhouse building. As part of the Mildura Riverfront Precinct redevelopment, the early 1900s coal-fired power plant, has been restored and upgraded to include spaces for exhibitions, functions, retail and events.
The first screening was followed by a public celebration at the precinct, making it a true community gathering place.
The work plays every night at dusk, inviting people to gather and share the moment, to Yennaga Yettang, or Come See.
Artist Maree Clarke. A Mutti Mutti, Yorta, Yorta, Wamba Wamba Boonwurrung woman.
Composer Catherine Threlfall (left) and Sound Editor Merilyn Air (right).
The crowd enjoying the first screening at the Powerhouse building.
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The Victorian Women's Public Art Program aims to address the underrepresentation of women and their achievements through enduring public artworks such as statues and sculptures.
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