Spacecraft Studio / ARM Architecture / Artist Mitch Mahoney
VSBA New School bundle, Melbourne, 2022

Nearnung Primary School

The artwork process began by commissioning First Nations research looking at six new primary schools sites located east and west of the Werribee River system which marks a boundary for Wathaurung and Boon Wurrung land. Barry Gilson, a Wathaurung poet, singer and cultural researcher, framed the site research to fit either a specific Wathaurung perspective or a wider Kulin nations point of view. For example, addressing the Nearnung Primary School location, Uncle Barry drew our attention to a Songline and the story of Looern that maps geological formations, specifically granite outcrops, running from South Australia to Wamoom / Wilsons Promontory. The story illustrates a shared cultural inheritance between neighbouring Wathaurung and Boon Wurrung peoples. The site research was matched to Boon Wurrung artist Mitch Mahoney who connected with Barry’s narrative through his own experiences, cultural knowledge and art practices. Working at Spacecraft Studio in Footscray, Mitch created a portfolio of artworks which were passed back to the ARM Architecture team to position First Nations research, knowledge and creativity at the core of this school’s design process.