Uncle Warren Taggart is a Wonnarua elder and teacher of Aboriginal culture. In 2021, he collaborated with photographers to publish ‘Spirit of Place: Aboriginal Sites of the Hunter Region’, a book documenting important Aboriginal sites through a large section of Country – Wonnarua, Darkinung, Awabakal, Dharug – in the Hunter Region. The was accompanied by an exhibition at the Singleton Arts + Cultural Centre in 2023.
In Spirit of Place, Warren has written about his cultural journey – about conversations with his father and his rediscovery of his country through the wonderful sites that show such powerful imagery from his people. Much of his knowledge has come from stories told by his father and visits to sites. His ancestral family have inhabited these sites.
Come on a journey with Uncle Warren as he shares stories about Country, the art sites and their Dreaming importance.
I believe that I am part of the country.
This country doesn’t have boundaries but has ridgelines, rivers and different languages to give a sense of place.
A traditional belief is that we all come from the earth and will return to the earth, our mother.
Country is in my blood, in my heart and I just love it.
- Warren Taggart
