Key Points
- A 13-metre-long mural in Innisfail, northern Queensland, celebrates the diversity of the community.
- Artist Daniel Connell spent time with locals to turn their inspiring stories into a work of art.
- He says the gurdwara (temple) mural was a joint effort by ‘people from all walks of life’.
“One of the things I’m proud of in the mural is that it was painted mostly by the local sangat (‘community’ in Punjabi),” Daniel Connell told SBS Punjabi.
Taking over a 13 by 2.5-metre wall in the Innisfail Gurdwara’s (Sikh temple) ‘langar’ hall, the Adelaide-based artist conjured a scene that combines elements of Punjab (region in northern India) with stories that represent the wider local community.
“(It) brings together people from all walks of life,” he said of the mural, which took around one week to paint.
The Innisfail community came together to create the mural depicting elements of Punjab, India, and the local surroundings. Credit: Supplied
Connell said he spent the first week of his stay in the area at the Gurdwara and visiting the farms and homes of locals, from which he derived portraits, creative ideas and community connections regarding Punjab and Innisfail.
Known for its surrounding sugar and banana plantations, Innisfail is about one hour’s drive from Cairns and has a population of just over 7,000 people. Local community members say there are around 200 Sikh families in the greater Cairns region.
Baljit Kaur, a local resident involved in the project, said, “We have all migrated from Punjab and built our lives in Innisfail, so through this mural we wanted to show the growth of our community.”
Connell gathered inspiration form the Innisfail community to create a mural which encapsulates the cultural and religious diversity of the community. Credit: Supplied
‘A welcoming space’
Connell, who has a PhD in Visual Art from the University of South Australia and previously lived in India, had plenty of willing helpers.
He said he was able to harness the creativity of young minds by bringing art materials to the Gurdwara and asking children to visually represent what it means to be Sikh or Punjabi in Innisfail.
“It was all about a welcoming space,” Connell said.
Punjab is represented by symbols including the Himalayas, the Golden Temple (a gurdwara located in the city of Amritsar) and a field being plowed by an old man and his oxen.
Also represented are the banana fields and rainforests of Innisfail, surrounded by blue mountains, while the mural includes an ode to the traditional owners of the land, the Mamu people.
Inderjit Singh, an Innisfail farmer, said, “From the young to the elderly, from settled migrant families and new arrivals, everyone was involved in gathering ideas for the mural.”
“Children were asked to draw their ideas onto sheets of paper, which Mr Connell incorporated into the mural.”
Connecting the two distant but related lands is a depiction of langar (community kitchen), which Connell said was suggested by the children.
He said community members, including Pacific Islander labourers, are depicted sharing a meal together with local wildlife, including emus, cassowaries and snakes.
“Young people, toddlers, mums, dads, banana farmers, other farmers, police people, Aboriginal people, everybody helped, everybody was interested in it (the mural).
“And that I think it’s the beautiful thing about the Gurdwara, it brings people from all walks of life together,” Connell shared.
Check out the full interview with Connell, his journey in creating the mural and the hidden symbolic representations:
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