Set amongst sprawling vineyards and native bushland in McLaren Vale, the gallery space at Red Poles is the only permanent gallery on the Fleurieu Peninsula that exclusively showcases Aboriginal art.

This is something owner Ros Miller is fiercely passionate about.

“I’ve always loved Indigenous art,” she says. “I want to educate people that Indigenous art is so diverse. I love it how each community and artist has a different style, and I think our current exhibition shows this perfectly.”

Ros refers to the distinct artworks of Amanda Westley and Cedric Varcoe, which are featured side-by-side in the Ngarrindjeri Ruwe: Our Lands and Waters exhibition on display until Sunday 1 December.

Amanda is from one of the oldest Aboriginal families on the Fleurieu Peninsula’s south coast. She paints contemporary dot work in vibrant colours to represent her coastal country hometown of Victor Harbor.

“Aboriginal people have a very deep connection to country,” she explains. “It’s part of our identity. I like to focus on the colours of country and I try to think about how my ancestors before me would have seen our Ngarrindjeri Ruwe [country].”

Her intricate dot work complements Cedric’s sweeping creation stories of Ngarrindjeri country, which spans from the lower River Murray and Coorong regions through to Victor Harbor and Kangaroo Island.

Ngarrindjeri Dance by Cedric Varcoe.

“Cedric has always been someone I’ve looked up to, not just in art, but because of his knowledge,” Amanda says.

“It’s an absolute privilege to have my art alongside his in this exhibition.”

Ros, who is also the creator of the Fleurieu Arts and Culture Guide, spends countless hours researching in order to source her artists. It has taken her 18 months to build up a rapport with communities throughout regional South Australia, and she always works directly with the community rather than through agents.

Red Poles will soon feature Maruku Arts pieces all the way from the heart of Australia. Maruku means “belonging to black” and is an arts collective owned and operated by Anangu, the Aboriginal people from the Western and Central Deserts in South Australia’s Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara(APY) Lands. The exhibition will showcase iconic artist Rene Kulitja, who is most famous for her painting Yananyi Dreaming that envelops a Qantas Boeing 737. As well as exquisite paintings, Maruku Arts is an organisation renowned for unique wooden carvings, called punu.

The upcoming exhibition Nganampa Ngura – Nganampa Tjukurpa: Our Home, Our History opens on Saturday 7 December at 3pm. The husband and wife woodcarving team Tanya Singer and Errol Evans will speak at the opening.

Ros’ vision for the Indigenous program at Red Poles is to continue to spread cultural awareness in creative ways that engage the community. There are plenty of interactive experiences planned for 2020, which include silk art workshops during the Fringe Festival in March and an Indigenous Festival called Red Poles and Spinning Yarns. This two-day celebration kicks off on 2 May 2020 and will include a marquee on the lawn, art markets, cultural dance, bush food, and hopefully plenty of sunshine to flood this special place of good food, wine, ale and art.

To keep up to date with the Red Poles Indigenous Program please visit: redpoles.com.au/indigenous-program

Punu (wooden carvings) are in the upcoming Nganampa Ngura – Nganampa Tjukurpa exhibition.