Fusion Interwoven Cultures

This striking sculpture stands as a landmark welcome to Chinatown the traditional heart of Broome.
The work was created by Safehaven Studios in response to the pearling heritage that built Broome; the many layers of people, shared histories, stories, and connections that weave their way through the fabric of Chinatown. Pearlshell is highly valued by the saltwater people of this region, and pearls and pearlshell have had a significant place in many cultures throughout history. In Broome many cultures are interwoven; people came across the seas, from their homes in search of pearlshell.

To develop this work, the artists discovered the stories of innovation, resilience, struggle, and joy. Life in Chinatown during the pearling heyday was busy and diverse; it was a predominantly Asiatic business quarter with a lively jumble of merchants, emporiums, eating and boarding houses. Everyone came together to share skills, language, traditions, food, music, and kinship. This created common threads that are interwoven in the community, 

The sculpture has a curved open form that echoes a pearl shell, a boat hull, a tear or water droplet. on each side basketry encases pearlshells and timbers are bound with pitched rope, just like the skilled craftsmanship of traditional pearling luggers. At the apex of the artwork is a unique symbol with a symmetrical design based on ancient idiograms. Transcendent, it reaches  up and beyond, to connect the earth with the sky, the ocean with the stars, family with ancestors and people with place.

An art work by Alex and Nicole Mikle.

Located in the,roundabout of the intersection of Carnarvon Street and Napier Terrace, Chinatown Broome.