Permission to use language given by Neville Collard, Nyoongar Elder
Djilba Exhibition, 2023
Djilba is the season in the Nyoongar calendar when the yellow and cream acacia flowers start to bloom. It’s the start of the massive flowering explosion that happens in the South West.
Traditionally, the main food sources included many of the land based grazing animals as in the season before. These included the Yongar (kangaroo), the Waitj (emu) and the Koomal (possum).
As the days start to warm up, we start to see and hear the first of the new borns with their proud parent out and about providing them food, guiding them through foraging tasks and protecting their family units from much bigger animals, including people.
The woodland birds will still be nest bound, hence the swooping protective behavior of the Koolbardi (Magpie) starts to ramp up and if watched closely, so to do the Djidi Djidi (Willy Wag Tails) and the Chuck-a-luck (Wattle Birds) to name a couple of others.
As the season progresses and the temperatures continue to rise, we’ll start to see the flower stalks of the Balgas (Grass Trees) emerging in preparation for the coming Kambarang season.
Immerse yourself in the soulful sounds of Ilish and the enigmatic stack of talent that is Bluo, all the while surrounded by unique and incredible artwork throughout the quirky Art Space we know and love.