On my second trip to Australia in 2008, I made a pilgrimage to Uluru in the Northern Territory, (better known as Ayer’s Rock, named after the European who ‘discovered’ it). Ofcourse this land has been held sacred by the Anangu, the Aboriginal people for thousands of years. This huge red rock rising out of the desert has a mythical, mysterious quality.

After settling into my hotel,  I took a shuttle bus to view Uluru at sunset – the perfect photo op. The next morning, I set out  with the intent to have a more intimate experience with the sacred rock. The Aborigines request that visitors not climb it yet the Australian Parks Department who leases the site from the Aboriginal people, allow it. I was in the minority who chose to respect the sacredness of the site and walk around the base of the rock, a distance of 10.6 km.

(click on images below to enlarge)

As I walked, I did a meditation and communed with mother nature, and the spirit of the ancestors. Around every corner were undulating rocks, sensuous and feminine, in colors that ranged from rose to bright red to purple. I was delighted to find several small caves along the periphery with drawings of spirals and other creation myth symbols. (My heading on this blog is from one of the caves.) What a gift to have the opportunity to walk this sacred land, following in the footsteps of the ancestral beings and feeling the connection to Spirit!

The Heritage Trust is an organization whose goal is to protect ancient sites and artefacts around the world. They just mentioned in their latest blog the plight of many rock art sites in Australia that aren’t being protected, Erasing Australia: A Journey to Destruction. Read more here….

This is a few prints from a series of monotypes, Notes from Uluru, 30″ x 22″, I created upon returning to my studio. They reflect the vivid colors of the earth and the symbols hidden away in the caves -my own vision and experience.

(click on images below to enlarge)