A major outdoor public artwork by leading First Nations multidisciplinary artist Brenda L. Croft (Gurindji/Malngin/Mudburra) has been unveiled along the Barangaroo waterfront. The landmark installation, titled Naabami (thou shall/will see): Barangaroo (army of me) presents 60 large-scale photographic portraits of contemporary First Nations women and girls.

Photographed in Canberra and Sydney from 2019 – 2022, some of the participants include women and girls photographed by Croft spanning three decades, and some are first-time subjects. Several generations of families are portrayed; some participants were first photographed as children, now represented as steadfast young women; sisters, aunties, mothers, grandmothers. Cultural affiliations range from the southeast to the northern regions of the continent. Contemporary First Nations sovereign warriors grounded in their First Nations sovereignty. Their steady collective gaze – inward and outward – reflects the steadfast sovereign actions of Cammeraygal warrior woman Barangaroo, more than two centuries after she lived and died on her traditional homelands, now known as Sydney.

This major project commissioned by Lendlease, is presented as part of Sydney Festival 2023, and will be on display until 29 January.