Shining light on Arrernte Country
The spectacular Parrtjima light festival returns to central Australia.
PARRTJIMA – A FESTIVAL IN LIGHT will illuminate the desert landscape of Alice Springs (Mparntwe) on 12–21 April 2024. This unique light festival combines technology with traditional storytelling in a rich celebration of First Nations culture. The theme this year is “interconnectedness”, with the festival’s spectacular light displays exploring concepts such as intergenerational wisdom, cultural ties between nations, collective responsibility and more.
ROCK-ART SITES OFFER WINDOW INTO THE PAST
NEW RESEARCH FROM Flinders University has revealed Red Lily Lagoon’s rock-art sites, in Arnhem Land, were ‘chosen’ for their critical vantage points. Scientists used aerial and drone surveys, subsurface imaging, and elevation data to model the lagoon’s environmental conditions 28–15,000 years ago, and discovered the floodplain floor was 7–15m lower than it is today. This indicates that environmental changes influenced the accessibility, visibility, and function of the sites over time.
“When archaeologists interpret rock art, they often assume the landscape hasn’t changed since theart was first inscribed, which certainly