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Journal article
Where Fanny Balbuk Walked: Re-Imagining Perth's Wetlands
M/C Journal, Vol.18(6), pp.1-4
2015
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Abstract
Like many cities, Perth was founded on wetlands that have been integral to its history and culture (Seddon 226-32). However, in order to promote a settlement agenda, early mapmakers sought to erase the city's wetlands from cartographic depictions (Giblett, Cities). Since the colonial era, inner Perth's swamps and lakes have been drained, filled, significantly reduced in size, or otherwise reclaimed for urban expansion (Bekle). Not only have the swamps and lakes physically disappeared, the memories of their presence and influence on the city's development over time are also largely forgotten. What was the site of Perth, specifically its wetlands, like before British settlement? In 2014, an interdisciplinary team at Edith Cowan University developed a digital visualisation process to reimagine Perth prior to colonisation. This was based on early maps of the Swan River Colony and a range of archival information. The images depicted the city's topography, hydrology, and vegetation and became the centerpiece of a physical exhibition entitled Reimagining Perth's Lost Wetlands and a virtual exhibition hosted by the Western Australian Museum. Alongside historic maps, paintings, photographs, and writings, the visual reconstruction of Perth aimed to foster appreciation of the presettlement environment-the homeland of the Whadjuck Nyoongar, or Bibbulmun, people (Carter and Nutter). The exhibition included the narrative of Fanny Balbuk, a Nyoongar woman who voiced her indignation over the 'usurping of her beloved home ground' (Bates, The Passing 69) by flouting property lines and walking through private residences to reach places of cultural significance. Beginning with Balbuk's story and the digital tracing of her walking route through colonial Perth, this article discusses the project in the context of contemporary pressures on the city's extant wetlands. The reimagining of Perth through historically, culturally, and geographically grounded digital visualisation approaches can inspire the conservation of its wetlands heritage.
Details
- Title
- Where Fanny Balbuk Walked: Re-Imagining Perth's Wetlands
- Creators
- John C Ryan (Author) - Southern Cross University, Faculty of Business, Law and ArtsDanielle Brady (Author)Christopher Kueh (Author)
- Publication Details
- M/C Journal, Vol.18(6), pp.1-4
- Publisher
- Queensland University of Technology
- Identifiers
- 991013063111602368
- Academic Unit
- Faculty of Business, Law and Arts
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article