SCENES inspired by Il Bogan and Round Mountain, Rathdowney and Mt Barney surround the new sandstone Gathering Circle behind Beaudesert Hospital.
It is a sacred space, borne of a vision for people to come together and to celebrate life’s journey, from the birth of babies to end of life care.
Children through to Elders gathered to unveil the new space with Beaudesert Hospital staff and other stakeholders during NAIDOC Week celebrations.
Local artist Kim Williams, a Kullilli-Wakka-Wakka woman, painted the four art panels reflecting culturally significant places around Beaudesert to give people a place to go and find peace when they are in hospital.
She dedicated the artwork to Mununjali man Sheldon ‘Marbuck’ Fogarty in a moving tribute to the local son, brother, uncle, cousin and friend to many who passed away in 2023.
“It’s about reflecting on Country, bringing people together, and it’s especially significant in this area where our mob can come together when they have sick people in the hospital and feel relaxed, have a breather outside,” she said.
“An artwork like this can bring back memories of their childhood, going out camping. If you’re dying, looking at the painting can bring back memories of times with family. When I created it, I thought, ‘imagine having Marbuck out here, and he’d be able to remember going out fishing’ and that made it special for me.”
Beaudesert Hospital Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Liaison Officer Dave Bestmann spoke about the local significance of the Gathering Circle, with the sandstone sourced locally and plans for bush tucker plantings in the works.
Beaudesert Hospital Facility Manager Margaret Wendt said the work was meaningful for the whole community.
“Our vision was for this to be a space where everyone would come together and talk, our First Nations community and staff and staff and the community who aren’t First Nations people,” she said.
“It’s a space to celebrate the whole of life – one of the joys of a rural facility is we have babies being born right through caring for people through their lifetime to amazing end of life care, helping people on their journey.”
