First Nations Truth-telling: Temporary and permanent artworks
The North Sydney Olympic Pool site is located on the lands of the Cammeraygal people. Prior to colonisation, this harbourside location formed part of a rich cultural landscape used for fishing, gathering, and movement along Sydney Harbour for thousands of years. The site has since undergone significant transformation from Aboriginal Country, to industrial land associated with the construction of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, to its current use as a civic recreational facility.
Council has comissioned public art project that seeks to acknowledge and centre the site's layered history through a First Nations-led approach. This project is not solely about commemoration, it is an opportunity to restore visibility to stories that have been disrupted and to embed First Nations knowledge and presence within a prominent civic site.
Ahead of the commission and installation of the permanent artwork in late 2026, Council has commissioned a temporary artwork to commit to First Nations presence at the site from day one.
Whale Dreaming by Saltwater Elder Uncle Bryce Moran is "a dreamtime story of the Cammeraygal Nation told through the whale's journey to the Headland and north for mating season." With cultural consultation from Auntie Jeanie Moran, Council has commissioned First Nations creative consultation company Dark Lightning to animate Uncle Bryce's painting to help share this story with visitors to the North Sydney Olympic Pool.
The animated work will be installed against the living sandstone wall, in the same downstairs corridor where the permanent work will be located. It will be on display until the installation of the permanent commissioned work.
You can follow the whale's journey and learn more about this story on the ground floor of the pool complex from Friday 7 August. The artwork will be unveiled as part of the launch celebrations happening at North Sydney Olympic Pool.
Please note that applications for the permanent artwork are now closed. The announcement of the selected artist is expected by end of September with the completed work in place in late 2026.
Image description: Saltwater Elder Uncle Bryce Moran stands against a brick wall alongside his artwork Whale Dreaming which sees a patterned whale breaching and leaping out of deep blue water against a clear blue sky.
Image credit: Dark Lightning