Noongar Railway History

Karrak Designs (Dellas Bennell & Korrine Bennell-Yarran)

Title: Noongar Railway History

Artist/s: Karrak Designs (Della Bennell and Korrine Bennell-Yarran)

Year: 2025

Category: Integrated

Site: Long Park, Queens Park Station precinct

Location Details: Railway Play Space, shade canopies, ground plane and seating.

Medium: Perforated aluminium and Sandblasted concrete

Artist/s Statement:

Karrak’s designs within the Railway Play Space explore the Noongar railway history. Our Family, like many Noongar families, contributed significantly through hard work in the timber mills and along the railways in the Southwest. They processed trees such as Jarrah, to make railway sleepers and bridges, while Marri was used for different components. The railway industry is an integral part of Noongar family's history. The journey along the railways is marked by the distinctive balgas and rock formations, signifying that you are in Noongar Country. Employment on the railways required Noongar men and their families to move constantly, aligning with our cultural nomadic lifestyle and bidi pathways. Rare wildflowers from the Southwest region, which are frequently observed along the railway lines are incorporated into the designs. This flora holds a unique importance in Noongar culture, offering both medicinal and nutritional benefits. Wildlife and birds are also represented such as the Splendid Blue Fairy Wren and Weitj (emus) that inhabit the forest areas where the earlier timber mills were established. Weitj symbolises the nomadic lifestyle, with their footprints serving as a reflection of our own imprints left upon the land.

The Public Transport Authority acknowledge that Noongar languages are oral in nature and that one word can be spelt in multiple ways.