Project Overview
Qantas’ Minyma Kutjara Tjukurpa Art Aircraft, designed by Balarinji in collaboration with Pitjantjatjara artist Maringka Baker, is an important and powerful expression of Australian identity.
Telling the sacred Two Sisters Creation story, the cultural and symbolic richness of this design reflects a contemporary and authentic Aboriginal Australian narrative celebrating family, resilience, and the principles of caring for the Country.
Through art, color, and story, the fuselage design expresses Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander philosophies about sustainability, including living close to and caring for the Country, ideas which are deeply embedded within Indigenous culture and practice, and can inform Australia and the world.
Project Commissioner
Project Creator
Team
Justine Cooper, Project Manager
Rachel Attwater, Graphic Designer
Manuela Strano, Designer
Gabriella Meek, Community Engagement
Project Brief
In the post-Voice Referendum social environment, it is more vital than ever that leading Australian corporations partner with designers to shine a light on the importance of the founding narrative of our nation.
The long-standing Balarinji-Qantas partnership rose to this challenge with the launch of Minyma Kutjara Tjukurpa, an A220 Art Aircraft, the sixth in the Flying Art Series since 1994.
Qantas commissioned Balarinji to create this unique new fuselage design as part of the launch of QantasLink’s new fleet of A220 aircraft, which have significant sustainability credentials regarding fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. Its intent is to celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art and culture in a joyful, respectful, and authentic way.
As a reconciliation leader, Qantas’ vision is to create a shared national identity through the social, economic, and cultural inclusion of all First Nations Peoples. This vision is realized through the Minyma Kutjara Tjukurpa Art Aircraft.
Project Innovation/Need
The fuselage design was created as part of the launch of Qantas’ new fleet of A220 aircraft, which have significant sustainability credentials regarding fuel consumption and CO2 emissions.
Drawing from the Minyma Kutjara Tjukurpa artwork by Pitjantjatjara artist Maringka Baker, telling the Creation story of the Two Sisters, the fuselage design represents ancient yet forward-looking parallels between sustainability and Indigenous Australia.
Through art, color, and story, the fuselage design expresses Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander philosophies about sustainability through caring for Country, ideas which have always been, and continue to be, deeply embedded within Indigenous culture and practice.
This is most evident in the design’s color palette, including changing the airline’s iconic tail from red to green. It is the first in the Flying Art Series to depart from Qantas’ iconic red and white tail, instead adopting a dynamic green color palette to underline the artwork’s social, environmental, and cultural messaging.
Balarinji applied its innovative, best practice co-design and community collaboration framework to the project to create the fuselage design. Collaborating deeply with the artist, her family, her community, and the Tjungu Palya Arts Centre, ensured the cultural significance of the artwork was central to the project.
The artist, Maringka Baker, and the meaning of her work are central to the social impacts of this project. Balarinji’s approach to co-design with Marinka as a storyteller and cultural custodian on this project is exemplary.
Design Challenge
The fuselage design is the most complex livery ever designed for this type of aircraft. It features 20,700 painted dots in 18 colors and took 100 painters in Airbus’ Mirabel, Canada paintshop to execute over 14 days.
The design process involved deconstructing the original painting and reforming it to around the A220 fuselage, in a way that responds to the viewer from all angles - from the ground, an air bridge, and in the sky. Scale, color, distribution of motifs, and compatibility with Qantas branding and safety requirements were carefully considered.
Two of the biggest challenges were ensuring the cultural integrity of the design and managing the geographic distances between the project’s stakeholders, including the extreme remoteness of the artist’s community.
Balarinji’s best practice co-design and community engagement processes involved deep collaboration with design teams in Sydney and Mirabel, Canada, and the artist and her family in very remote Central Australia who had limited access to telecommunications.
This was done through extensive in-person consultation as well as online, including video conferencing (when possible).
Balarinji attended the Airbus workshop in Mirabel, Canada to oversee the painting of the fuselage and consult with engineers and paint specialists.
To ensure the themes, story, and cultural significance of the original artwork were translated with integrity, care, and authenticity, Balarinji spent significant time on Country in Central Australia with the artist and her family to co-design the translation of the artwork.
Effectiveness
As with the other aircraft in the Flying Art Series, Minyma Kutjara Tjukurpa inspires positive social change and is an exemplar of how design can impact social issues.
Minyma Kutjara Tjukurpa brings compassionate, healing design impact at a post-Voice moment in time, when a large percentage of the Australian population’s hopes were dashed.
The aircraft generated widespread positive feedback from around the world and effectively communicated Qantas’ commitment to sustainability and reconciliation across its operations.
The cultural and symbolic richness of the fuselage design reflects a contemporary and authentic Aboriginal Australian narrative. It evokes an emotional response to belonging, from an authentic and contemporary embedding in a Country deeply connected to themes of family, resilience, sustainability, and culture.
Having one of Australia’s best-known brands celebrate and acknowledge the beauty and importance of Australia’s foundational narrative on the global stage has a profound effect on how we think about ourselves as Australians and how we can draw from the strength, integrity, and beauty of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture.
Graphic Design - Identity and Branding
This award celebrates creative and innovative design in the traditional or digital visual representation of ideas and messages. Consideration given to clarity of communication and the matching information style to audience.
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