Waterholes is a Pilbara artwork used in Living STEM materials.
It pays tribute to the rainy season and transformation of country.
CSIRO has an ongoing commitment to the support and engagement of Indigenous suppliers and artists as represented in our organisational Reconciliation Action Plan.
In commissioning local artwork for use in the Living STEM materials, we honour the people of the West Pilbara who have so generously been a part of the early development of the resources and frameworks for educators.
To source the local artwork, we underwent a curation process in line with our cultural and governance policies and government practices. Engaging the support of an Indigenous owned and operated creative agency, Saltwater People, local Artist and Yindjibarndi person, Ms Sheryl Hicks was selected. We set criteria for the artwork based on the program’s vision to create a truly connected program with the people and community of the West Pilbara.
We were also delighted to support a local Educator, as Sheryl is a long-standing member of the teaching community in Western Australia, deepening our connection to the artwork. Here on CSIRO Youtube, you can hear directly from Sheryl about her artwork.
CSIRO gratefully acknowledges Sheryl’s allowed use of their artwork for Living STEM and CSIRO. The original ‘Waterholes’ painting is now proudly on display in our Chief Executive’s Canberra offices for visitors to enjoy.
[Sheryl Hicks sits in a camp chair. Behind her are trees and rocky hills]
[Title: Sheryl Hicks. Ngarluma/Yindjibarndi Artist and Educator]
Sheryl Hicks: So hello, my name is Sheryl Hicks. I'm a Ngarluma and Yindjibarndi woman from Roebourne.
[Footage of birds flying low over a waterhole]
Sheryl Hicks: A lot of my paintings are about water, waterholes, rivers.
[Footage of a vibrant red Sturt Desert Pea flower]
Sheryl Hicks: And then a lot about wildflowers, a lot about the colors of the country.
[Footage of fine grass blowing in the wind with rocky red hills in the background]
[Footage of Sheryl Hicks standing in the landscape of grass and red rocky hills holding a blue painting with vivid concentric blue and purple circles outlined with blue and white lines of dots. There is a soft sound of water trickling]
Sheryl Hicks: And this piece titled Waterholes is one of my paintings about the waterholes after a big rain. We get a lot of rain and all the waterholes fill up.
[Footage of Sheryl Hicks in the landscape tracing her finger across the painting]
Sheryl Hicks: The rivers are all running and sometimes the country is flooded with water.
[Close up footage of Sheryl Hicks' hand pointing out different parts of the painting]
[Footage of Sheryl Hicks talking in the camp chair]
Sheryl Hicks: Well, I guess to me the water is important because it's where we gravitate to as a family. So when we go out bush, we go to waterholes or we go to rivers. And then, you know, we wait for that big rain to come.
[Close up images of Sheryl Hicks tracing designs on the painting with her finger]
Sheryl Hicks: And that's about our connection as a family and maintaining that connection to country.
[Close up footage of a purple flower against a background of grass and red rocky hills]
Sheryl Hicks: It's important to me as an Aboriginal woman and as an educator for children to have a strong cultural identity. They need to know their language, culture, history.
[Footage of Sheryl Hicks talking in a camp chair]
Sheryl Hicks: It's really important for every child to have that knowledge of language and culture. But I also think it's equally important for non-Aboriginal people to be able to experience Aboriginal culture, Aboriginal history.
[Close up footage of Sheryl Hicks pointing to design elements on her painting]
Sheryl Hicks: You're actually not going to learn about Aboriginal people unless you talk to Aboriginal people.
[Footage of Sheryl Hicks talking in a camp chair]
Sheryl Hicks: And that's where I think reconciliation happens. I think an important place to start that is in schools.
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