Ngalawan: We Live. We Remain. is a major survey exhibition of senior Darug artist, Leanne Tobin with over 40 years of her practice represented, curated by Lewers: Penrith Regional Gallery.
Key works from public and private collections, as well as a newly commissioned digital work, turn the lens on what has long been obscured—the continuity of Darug culture, the truth of what happened on this Country, and the determined work of reclaiming it. Ngalawan is an emphatic declaration of Darug cultural practice, here in outer Western Sydney.
From early community-led mural projects and portraiture, to award-winning paintings and her iconic eel sculptures, these works are seen together for the first time in a wide-ranging exhibition that encompasses the Main Gallery and Lewers House Gallery.
Tobin’s practice is grounded by a deep respect and reverence for Country, propelling her long career that has been equal parts community leader and advocate, as much as individual art practitioner.
Born and raised in Western Sydney, Tobin spent much of her childhood years just a few blocks away from where Lewers now operates; but her life as an artist, and as an Aboriginal artist, tells a much more complex story.
Raised without knowledge of her Aboriginality, Tobin’s practice began in the 1980s as an Aboriginal resource teacher in Kakadu, Northern Territory. It was there she discovered her heritage as a Darug woman and descendent of Bulunggayi (Maria Locke). Tobin subsequently moved back to Darug Country—not only to learn about her heritage, but to care for her Country and share its untold stories.
Leanne Tobin is a multidisciplinary artist of Irish, English and Aboriginal heritage descending from the Buruberong and Wumali clans of the Darug, the traditional Aboriginal people of the Greater Sydney region. Often working collaboratively with community groups, local schools and institutions, Tobin uses her prolific and extensive interdisciplinary practice to tell local stories, evoke an environmental conscience, and encourage respect towards the land and its original people. Her art practice seeks to encourage an open and honest dialogue about the past and to nurture, respect and care for Country, paying homage to our Old People and their legacy.
