Riptide by contemporary artist and Flinders alumna Elizabeth Yanyi Close is a vibrant mural located at the bus stop in Sturt Precinct carpark thirteen. An Anangu woman from the Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara language groups, Yanyi Close draws from her cultural heritage and personal connection to Country to inform her practice, which spans large-scale murals and digital media.
The artwork dynamically activates the urban space with rich colours and circular motifs that are a signature style of the artist, and explores themes of diversity and inclusion, community and Aboriginal sovereignty. The artist uses a palette of sea teals, sky blue, navy and warm browns to respond to the landscape in and around the university and evoke the distant hills and night sky. Yanyi Close’s use of circular motifs throughout Riptide and other works symbolise several concepts including Aboriginal custodianship and responsibility for Country; conversation topics which she hopes to bring to the forefront.[1] Created with the support of Flinders University student Lilian Fellner, Riptide not only enlivens the urban setting but acts as a powerful visual current of cultural pride and shared learning—key values underpinning the broader Sturt Murals project.
[1] Elizabeth Yanyi Close, personal communication with Flinders University Art Museum, August 23, 2019.
