Ochre

The need to make marks is a defining human trait.

Signs drawn in the sand are blown by the wind,

or washed clear by the tide.

Marks made with charcoal or ochre sometimes remain

and show us the stories of our ancestral beginnings;

the wisdom of our elders,

the evolution of our land and its creatures,

the history of its people,

and the journeys we make.

Whether we draw with damp pigments upon bodies in the sun,

or paint a canvas with bright colours or earthy ochre tones;

we express our relationship to land and country,

and each other.

It is a timeless ritual

and takes us into the very heart of what sacred is all about.

Connecting us to the spirit world,

ochre is the substance

that gives form to imagination and invention.