Arts and Culture Strategy

It is no secret that hospital patients are influenced by their surroundings.  Hospital design directly impacts patient health.  Care is being taken to use colour, natural imagery and wayfinding to ease a patients's hospital stay. 

The Arts and Culture Strategy is a way to integrate Aboriginal, Chinese, multicultural and contemporary Australian aesthetic to reflect aspects of the local community and environment and give various spaces a particular identity.

Dragon Tail Comet – Lindy Lee

Dragons are powerful symbolic creatures in many cultures.  In European traditions, they are not only serpentine but have wings which allow them to soar above the heavens giving them the ability to see great vistas and panoramas.  Dragons see clearly and also have the power to absorb the totality – the big picture, meaning the inclusivity of everything in the cosmos.  Dragons also represent transformational and healing energy.  The Chinese believe that they are descended from dragons.  These celestial beasts hold potent and auspicious powers which control water, rainfall, typhoons and floods. 

The suspended sculpture, with its stainless steel head and 1000s of cascading crystal balls, invokes the images of Dragon Tail comets which symbolises restorative, visionary power for the greater good.

Aboriginal Art – Megan Cope

The large scale artwork was created in consultation and participation with Kurranulla local senior artists Aunty Deanna and Aunty Annettte.  Artworks were combined into landscapes that depict local animals and important plant species over a coastal geomorphic map which also features local Dharawal language.  The artwork reminds us all of the richness of Aboriginal culture, our survival today and our continued responsibilities to country and community.

The artists would like to acknowledge the lands and seas of the Bidjigal and Gweagal peoples, as well as neighbouring Dharug and Dharawal nations.  As proud Wonnarua/Wiradjuri, Bundjalung and Quandamooka artists, we pay our respects to ancestors, elders past and present and young leaders in the community.

Happy Face Project – Shoufay Derz

‘The Happy Face’ collaborative community engagement project features a diversity of personalities from the hospital community and wide St George area.  Individuals were invited to dress up with a vibrant array of costumes and props and strike a pose. The process of each portrait was a collaborative performance between the artist and each participant.