Making string: an ethnobotanical learning journey on the south coast
of NSW.
Daphne Nash
Research School of Humanities
Australian National University
Two Aboriginal artists sit in the autumn sun, intently pounding long strips
of bark with heavy stones, separating the bark and splitting the fibre
strands to make them more pliable. After much pounding the fibre is
ready to work into string – metres and metres of it for making traditional
string bags.
At first this may seem like a scene from a remote place but it occurred on the south
coast of NSW in 2007, and although the bags will not be used for collecting shellfish
or yams, they are highly significant for the people who made them. Several Koori
artists have been contracted to provide Indigenous cultural objects for use in the
production of Baz Luhrmann’s latest movie Australia, due to be released in 2008.
Their knowledge is both old and new and their story highlights some concepts which
relate Indigenous Knowledge and place-based inquiry into environmental issues.
There has been a considerable shift in the social and political landscape of science
education over the last two decades and it is now mandatory to teach an awareness of
alternative perspectives of the natural world. It is not always completely clear what
should be taught or how to teach it, particularly in relation to modern, urban,
Indigenous culture. The way in which some south coast Koories are rekindling their
knowledge traditions and actively engaging local inquiry suggests some ideas for the
classroom.
What is Indigenous Knowledge?
Indigenous Knowledge, as I have come to understand it in my work with Koories on
the south coast is a very broad term and means different things to different people. To
begin with, ‘Indigenous Knowledge’ is not the term that Aboriginal people
themselves prefer. When talking about knowledge of the environment that has been
passed on down through generations, they are more likely refer to ‘culture
knowledge’. This kind of knowledge varies between groups and so is also referred to
as ‘local knowledge’. Science has had a long-standing interest in the local knowledge
of Indigenous peoples all over the world and scientific researchers have methodically
documented equivalent categories relating to plant and animal species. More recently
Indigenous researchers and others are advocating that Indigenous Knowledge must be
considered within a cultural context and not separated out for scientific purposes.
In NSW generally Indigenous people have experienced considerable disruption to
their knowledge systems. The combined processes of dispossession and colonisation
impacted heavily on the different language groups of the south coast so that they are
now rediscovering much of their heritage. In various locations Koories are exploring
their knowledge in a range of creative and innovative ways, some through art and oral
history while others are experimenting with traditional resources, such as plants.
1
String-making
Koori artists at Boolarng Nangamai Aboriginal Art and Culture Studio in Gerringong
(just north of Nowra) have been experimenting with making string in the way it was
done by their ancestors. Some of the older Koori people have relevant knowledge
which they are willing to share but string-making appears to have ceased a long time
ago. Reconstruction of this old practice requires a broad range of ethnobotanical
understanding including knowledge of certain plant species as well as their
distribution and abundance in the local region. Since objects made from plant fibre
are not preserved in the region, rare historical images are all that remains of the string
bags, fishing nets and shell necklaces from the early contact period. Consequently it
is quite a challenge to understand how the work was done. Similar objects exist in
museums for other parts of Australia and in some regions Aboriginal people continue
the traditional techniques, however these are of limited use. Plant resources on the
south coast and their processing techniques are often different.
So how did the artists go about recreating the knowledge of traditional stringmaking practices?
To begin this forensic fibre work, the artists together with their non-Indigenous
colleagues consulted the literature and visited museums in Sydney and Canberra.
They studied the techniques of other south-eastern people closely, recognising many
of the techniques on display. At the same time they began to experiment with
materials and techniques in their local area. They collected and dried the leaves of
Soft Twig-rush (Baumea rubiginosa) which grows in profusion in a nearby swamp.
Once dried and split the strands worked well into string. Also they tried the leaves of
an introduced garden plant, Red Hot Poker (Kniphofia uvaria). The dried leaves
proved very suitable and the artists often use them in their educational workshops.
The artists also followed up on traditional resources and the literature shows a variety
of plant resources used to provide string for a range of uses – pimelia for bogong nets;
kurrajongs and eucalyptus for string bags, fishing lines and nets; cyperus for duck
nets(Gott 1995). It seems that a number of different species were referred to as
kurrajongs because they were used to make fibre for use in string (Gott 1991) and the
name has remained with a couple of them, eg kurrajongs (Brachychiton spp.); Brush
Kurrajong (Commersonia fraseri). With this knowledge, they set about locating a
suitable local species. The location needed to be accessible so that the bark could be
harvested; not so easy! Brush Kurrajong, although common in local forests is not a
well-known tree, so some botanical research had to be done. With the help of a fellow
artist they ended up on a narrow strip of land between a farm boundary fence and a
road’s edge which dropped down a couple of metres to a busy stretch of Highway
One. Access to land is historically a significant issue: Aboriginal people were forced
off their traditional lands in the early 1800s and since then have struggled to maintain
access to important places. Whenever and wherever they can, many Koories continue
to access land and sea resources, and traditional fibre art is another motivation.
Having located the kurrajong tree, the next step was to retrieve the bark. The easiest
way seemed to be to chop down the trees since even the mature forms are quite
slender. But how many trees were needed to make the required amount of bark?
After some quick guesswork, they cut down several and took them back to the studio
for processing (see Figure 1). The bark stripped off the stem quite easily and once
stripped, the next question arose: how to treat the bark? Do you let it dry out or deal
2
with it while its green and flexible? They chose to proceed while it was green, testing
a range of items to pound the bark. Rocks seemed the obvious choice but then it was
up to trial and error. The first stage is to pound the bark so that the inner bark comes
loose from the rough outer part. It became clear that the rocks with sharp edges cut
the fibre and ruined it for the next stage. In the string-making process, strips are
repeatedly divided to make them fine enough for plying into string. Lengthy pieces
are required so the round river stones work best to beat the bark. According to
historical records, the bark was sometimes ‘tanned’, soaked in water infused with
Geebung (Persoonia spp.) bark to strengthen the line (Lampert and Sanders 1973:
108). How long is it necessary to soak the fibre to preserve it? Several times during
their work the artists wondered how these processes were originally discovered and
perfected? Were they following a similar path to their ancestors hundreds, maybe
thousands of years earlier? And how long did it take to develop such techniques?
Figure 1: Stages in processing bark for string
1.
2.
3.
4.
Removing bark
Pounding bark
Stripping inner bark
Inner bark strips
An important element for knowledge transfer was missing. Demonstration and
imitation are well-known strategies for all people but are preferred Aboriginal
teaching and learning styles. The artists weren’t able to use their own powers of
observation. There is so much tacit knowledge involved in the practice of traditional
skills and learning by imitation allows so much unspoken knowledge and skill to be
transferred. Even if an early observer had written down in minute detail how each
process was carried out, there is still a lot of room for error through interpretation. In
the case of string-making, there are a large number of steps involved and the artists
largely relied on learning by trial and error – a relatively slow process. And so far we
have only considered the technical aspects of string-making!
As the artists have found out, there is so much more knowledge associated with a skill
than just a description of the process. There would have been important cultural
knowledge associated with the traditional plant uses which we can only surmise
today: perhaps there were special places to gather, at certain times of the year, and
maybe only by certain people. There may have been particular ritual, artistic or social
significance of certain plants which was connected to their everyday uses. What were
the stories which connected the resources, the people and the places? While the
associations of past practices are no longer fully known, the regeneration of these
practices today have multiple meanings. Culture changes and the artists have revealed
the cultural significance of new forms of cultural practices particularly where places
have new meaning. Through their string-making the artists have built-up their local
3
environmental knowledge as well as their scientific knowledge. The experience has
brought a closer understanding of the people and the place they live in, about
biodiversity and about power relationships. Through their learning journeys the artists
have created new relationships with their local environment based on the rekindling
of their traditional knowledge.
So, if you go to the movies to see Australia, the latest Baz Luhrmann production
starring Nicole Kidman, take a close look at the Indigenous cultural objects in the
film. There’s a string bag and some other fibre items which demonstrate an important
process of environmental knowledge revitalization and its potential contribution to
our understanding of Indigenous worldviews.
Bibliography:
Gott, B. 1991. VICUSE: database of Victorian plants utilised by Koories.
———. 1995. NSWUSE: database of NSW plants utilised by Koories.
Lampert, R.J., and Sanders, F. 1973. Plants and men on the Beecroft Peninsula, New
South Wales. Mankind 9 (2):96-108.
4