We Are Orana
It has been said so often that everyone has a story. But we want to go further than that; we believe everyone's story is to be celebrated. Enpathised and shared. Did you know that reading other's stories actually give you a dopamine kick?
Orana is full of amazing people from diverse walks of life, cultures and backgrounds. We are proud of our community and the residents who call Orana home with us.
‘We Are Orana’ is a celebration of these residents and their stories.
Each quarter, we will share an amazing story by an Orana resident to encourage everyone in the community to become familiar with the people in the inclusive community. Enjoy the dopamine kick by laughing with their experiences, sympathising with their trials and nod your heads when you recognise something that triggers a memory within you.
We are all humans with a deep desire to connect. We have collected these stories so that the people living in Orana can get to know each other. Through shared experiences and by developing long-lasting connections, the Orana community flourishes. This connectedness will not only give you that dopamine kick mentioned above, but it will also give you a sense of belonging, safety, security and happiness – it’s not just the dopamine that will make you feel good!
We want to share a quick excerpt about one of our residents Rubaba. She has an incredible story of survival and providing for her family. Rubaba grew up in Pakistan as a Hazara Muslim, bearing persecution and threats from the Taliban for decades. Rubaba Bdescribes herself as a survivor and a go-getter. As a children’s social worker, she can find the work mentally exhausting, particularly as she is raising a young family. Nevertheless, she has found that through art, she can express things she finds difficult to talk about. Paint and thread work represent the intertwining of emotional traumas, emigrating, and losing connections with people.
To read the rest of Rubaba’s story, visit: www.oranaclydenorth.com.au/we-are-orana-rubaba-haider/
THE ARCHIBALD PRIZE AND ORANA
Orana is the official Program Partner of the Archibald Prize Exhibition at Bunjil Place in Narre Warren from 3 September to 16 September. The Archibald Prize is considered one of the most prestigious awards for portrait painting. Each year since 1912, talented artists from Australia have entered this historic competition to present a moment in time with their portraits of people from all walks of life, from celebrities, historic figures and local heroes. The Prize, nicknamed The Archie, is awarded to the artist by a judging panel from the Art Gallery of New South Wales and comes with a prize award of $100,000 and well-earned reverence.
The winner of the 2022 Archibald Prize has been awarded to Blak Douglas for his portrait of Indigenous artist Karla Dickens, titled Moby Dickens. He is the second Indigenous artist to win the Archibald since 2020, but this has been the first time a portrait of a Wiradjuri woman has won the Archie. The portrait catches her piercing eyes and her challenging stare while in her knees in the flood waters, with ominous black clouds above her, capturing the spirit of resilience and strength it takes to keep trudging through.
Orana is proud to be the Program Partner of the exhibition in Bunjil Place to celebrate the artists’ talents and their own resilience and strength. Art is an integral part of community because it tells us a story and gives us hope. Orana is passionate about supporting the arts and continues to donate to Bunjil Place so creativity and the arts can be celebrated and explored by everyone in the community and come together in a meeting place, like a corroboree.
To visit the exhibition, please book tickets online at www.bunjilplace.com.au