Once-in-a-lifetime Opera House piece from Yaegl artist

Frances Belle Parker’s latest work is one of her biggest, and in a treat, her two children got to show the world for the first time

Yaegl artist Frances Belle Parker has worked on some big canvasses, but her latest is truly larger than life.

Ms Parker's latest work, titled Angwirri, was projected onto the Sydney Opera House sails on sunrise on January 26.

The work, which translates in Yaygirr language to "begin to talk" and was the catalyst for her design.

"The colours are inspired by the vast array of colours present in the Australian landscape and coastline. The brown linear design symbolises a mapping of country/coastline," she said.

"The circle markings depict the 250+ Aboriginal Language groups present in Australia and the linear marks represent the 200 nationalities that call Australia home."

Ms Parker said by creating the work, it gave her the opportunity to help tell a story that not only represents who we are as a nation but also to give people a wider understanding of Aboriginal culture and how valuable it really is to our identity as a nation.

"Our sense of belonging to the land is something that is intrinsically embedded into our being, and as First Nations people we are responsible for sharing the truth of our history," she said.

Ms Parker and her family were in Sydney to see the unveiling, with Frances getting a quick peek the night before to check everything looked right.

In a special moment, her two children Olivia and Atticus were allowed to give the final go-ahead just after 5am to turn the lights on.

"We were over at the lookout opposite the opera house, and they were talking to the organisers saying 'ready, set, go', which was a really nice way of including them," she said.

"I've had artwork shown before, but only on the two smaller sails which could only be seen from the forecourt.

"It really is a once in a lifetime experience."

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – NCA NewsWire Photos January, 26, 2021 Dawn Projection on Sydney Opera House Picture: NCA NewsWire/Flavio Brancaleone

Ms Parker said that she had endeavoured to create something to match the brief, given to her just six weeks before the event, but was also in her unique style.

"I've had a few people see it and say they thought it was my work," she said.

In a departure from her usual style, Ms Parker created the artwork digitally, as opposed to traditional painting, and said it was something she had been recently exploring.

"It was an easier way for them to transfer the artwork, and certainly glad I did it this way," she said.

"If I did it with paint and had to make any changes it would've been much more difficult."

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