Eden Local Aboriginal Land Council celebrates traditional canoe-making project
As part of the 2025 funding round for the Maritime Museums of Australia Project Support Scheme, Eden Local Aboriginal Land Council received a grant to document and film the construction of a traditional Guridja (bark canoe) by a senior Thaua Elder.
This project was also supported by Creative Australia, and aims to preserve significant traditional maritime knowledges from the Far South Coast of NSW.
“I was taught how to make a bark canoe when I was just 11 years old”, said Uncle BJ Cruse. “That knowledge was handed down to me from my great-grandmother Mary Jane Walker through Uncle Colin Walker. It’s a technology that's been used for thousands of years, and it’s crucial that we preserve and pass it on.”
The associated film premiered in November at the Giiyong Festival in Jigamy, Thaua Country. A photographic exhibition has also been developed using stills from the film, and is on display until January at Bundian Gallery.
Images in this article are provided courtesy of Studio Jaanda / Eden Local Aboriginal Land Council.
The Maritime Museums of Australia Project Support Scheme is funded by the Australian Government through the Australian National Maritime Museum and the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts.
