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In doing some free reading over the summer on the Australian aborigines, I learned about "song lines." "Song line" is an English term given to dreaming tracks that aborigines would use when moving from one place to another. To both navigate and give thanks on their journey, or walkabout, they would sing the history of their people and the contours of the land they walked upon. The aborigines gave thanks to all that was in and on the land, and they felt it important to understand the oneness of the universe--that everything is interconnected and woven into any intricate web. The Aboriginal dot art is a way to document the path and stress the connection between man and nature that is the primary focus of their existence. I love the whole concept of synthesizing motion and color and having such an intimate connection with the earth that you can sing your way across its vastness. I also really like the meditative and contemplative nature of the dot art, and I would like to find a way to incorporate it into my own work.
