Rainbow Dreaming for Me and UooUoo
MEET OUR ADOPTED SCULPTURE FOR THE RCH’S ANNIVERSARY ART TRAIL
Sharlee Dunolly-Lee, a young Bendigo artist, is one of 100 selected to be a part of the Royal Children’s Hospital 150th Anniversary Art Trail this summer.
An emerging Dja Dja Wurrung artist in her early stages of applying cultural knowledge to the canvas, Sharlee is a descendant of the famous Aboriginal rights activist Thomas Dunolly. In recent years, she has begun to explore her Indigenous heritage through her art.
In 2019, Sharlee created an art portfolio that revolved around understanding and developing her cultural identity and forming her own artistic style and contemporary vision of Aboriginal culture. She is currently being mentored by leading artist Melinda Harper, who is also creating a special UooUoo design for the RCH Art Trail.
Each artist selected for the Royal Children’s Hospital 150th Anniversary Art Trail is creating a unique interpretation of Alexander Knox’s mystical creature UooUoo (pronounced you-you).
Each of the 100 sculptures has been sponsored by a business and will be installed in Melbourne and Geelong’s laneways, parks and public spaces from January 2021. The sculptures will then be auctioned to raise funds for the hospital.
Sharlee’s UooUoo is our adopted work. Called Rainbow Dreaming, the vivid and colourful cultural symbolism on a black painted background is inspired by her determination to pass on cultural knowledge in order to preserve and revive it, by incorporating symbolism from traditional culture.
The RCH Art Trail commemorates 150 years of the greatly valued Melbourne institution, the Royal Children’s Hospital. Equity Trustees enjoyed watching Rainbow Dreaming come to life in Sharlee’s Bendigo studio before it was shipped into Melbourne to await installation in the prime Melbourne location of the Bourke Street Mall.
The RCH and Equity Trustees have been connected for many years through our management of philanthropic funds and concern for public and community health. In just the past three years, we have distributed funds to the RCH on behalf of 63 charitable trusts, thanks to our philanthropic clients.
As a Melbourne institution ourselves – just a little younger than the RCH at 132 years – Equity Trustees is delighted to be a Principal Partner of the Me and UooUoo Art Trail, celebrating the rich and diverse cultural and artistic life of Melbourne.