Glasshouse Regional Gallery presents:
Secrets of Dawn - Dolly Peg Making
The Secrets of Dawn exhibition features an interactive collective artwork comprising of Dolly Pegs created by Coota Girls Survivors and descendants as a representation of the Coota Girls journey of forcible removal, institutionalisation and domestic slavery.
Coota Girls Survivors used the limited resources they had to create toys and games such as dolls out of wooden pegs, creating moments of joy, play and sisterhood despite their circumstances.
The wooden peg doll is also a visual reminder of the domestic labour that Coota Girls Survivors were trained to do as slaves in wealthy non-First Nations households.
The aim of this collective artwork is to highlight the stark contrast of the images portrayed in ‘Dawn Magazine’ of the Cootamundra Domestic Training Home for Aboriginal Girls as a place of happiness and opportunity, compared with the reality of neglect and domestic slavery.
Visitors to Secrets of Dawn are invited to contribute to this evolving collective artwork by creating a Dolly Peg in honour of the Coota Girls Survivors.
Drop in during Gallery opening hours to create your Dolly Peg. For extra guidance, join a local artist for a facilitated session on Saturday 7 November, anytime between 12pm and 2pm.
About The Exhibition
Secrets of Dawn is a powerful, award-winning exhibition that exposes the tactics of assimilation enforced under the NSW Aborigines Protection Act (1909–1969).
The award-winning Secrets of Dawn exhibition features content from Dawn Magazine alongside contemporary works from Coota Girls Survivors and descendants, exposing the tactics used under the Aborigines Protection Act (1909-1969) to progress the agenda of assimilation of First Nations people.
Through powerful truth-telling, Secrets of Dawn honours Coota Girls Survivors and all Stolen Generations Survivors who, despite efforts to eradicate First Nations people and culture through assimilation, have resisted and persisted through truth-telling, healing and self-determination.
Viewer Discretion Advised
We respectfully caution First Nations viewers that Secrets of Dawn contains images and stories of deceased persons.
This exhibition explores Stolen Generations history and Survivors’ personal stories, which viewers may find distressing.
Dawn Magazine contains deeply racist language and ideologies reflecting settler-colonial attitudes toward First Nations peoples.