Artist’s charity and anti-mine group shared charity funds during ‘independent’ Blayney closure efforts
The artist behind the ‘blue-banded bee’ mural at the centre of efforts to shut the Blayney goldmine saw his favourite charity secure a loan from anti-mine activists who went on to cite his work’s independence.
The artist behind a Bathurst mural cited in submissions to shut down the Blayney goldmine in NSW worked for a charity that was loaned $28,000 by the activist group that successfully opposed the project, with the money provided shortly after he joined their ranks.
Brisbane artist Birrunga Wiradyuri is a vocal member of the Wayne Weaver Foundation, a charity supporting bereaved First Nations prisoners and aiding in lifestyle adjustments for those leaving incarceration.
This comes alongside his work as founder of the Birrunga gallery in Brisbane.
On Tuesday, The Australian revealed Mr Wiradyuri was a member of the Wiradyuri Traditional Owners Central West Aboriginal Corporation from November 2021 to at least August 2024, covering the period in which he created the mural.
The WTOCWAC has been the driving force behind community efforts to axe the McPhillamys mine proposal.
Documents provided by the Australian Charities and Non-Profits Commission, with which the WWF is listed, indicate Mr Wiradyuri is not a “responsible person” for the charity but his business partner and chief executive of the Birrunga Gallery, Suzanne Child, is.
A responsible person is anyone listed as an administrator of a charity, with Ms Goodchild serving as the WWF’s director. Ms Goodchild also served as a member of WTOCWAC from June 2023 to at least August 2024.
Files from the Office of the Registrar of Indigenous Corporations indicate the WWF received a $28,000 loan from the WTOCWAC at some point in the 2022 financial, which remained unpaid through FY23.
It is not known if the loan has been repaid partially or in full, as ORIC awaits further financial reporting from the WTOCWAC. However, by June 30, 2023, the loan remained outstanding in full. It was the only charitable loan provided by the WTOCWAC in FY22 or FY23, and is sizeable in comparison to its annual FY23 profit of $40,577.
This loan period overlaps with Mr Wiradyuri’s production of the blue-banded bee mural at Bathurst Local Post Office, which the WTOCWAC would later cite in its submissions detailing the blue-banded bee’s longstanding significance to the Blayney site.
According to the ACNC, the WWF has not submitted mandatory financial statements and information reports since January 2021, meaning there is no visible record of the charity’s finances since receiving the WTOCWAC loan. It also means accurate finance and governance information regarding the charity has been elusive since January 2021 and overdue since June 2022.
FY20 figures indicate the charity incurs $43,000 in annual expenses, meaning the WTOCWAC loan would cover more than half a year of costs.
The Australian is not suggesting the WWF or the WTOCWAC engaged in any illegal activity or financial wrongdoing.
The 2020 WWF annual information statement indicated the company’s primary account method was using cash and its revenue stream of $57,669 was almost evenly divided between donations and bequests, goods and services, and other revenue.
The Birrunga Gallery, then known as the Henderson Gallery, opened on February 23, 2019. It is understood it aids in the operation of the WWF.
The blue-banded bee Dreaming story has not appeared in any of the six ethnographic studies seen by mine owner Regis Resources and there is no public evidence of the story before 2022.
Wiradyuri declared in February 2022 that the mural on the wall of the Bathurst post office was tied to a songline east of the Belubula River. But the Bathurst Regional Council said on Monday it was not aware of the Dreaming story before commissioning the artwork.
“The subject of the art (the blue-banded bee) was developed in partnership with elders during the commission,” a spokesperson said. “Council was not aware of the story prior to this.”
In her detailed reasons for opposing the mine, Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek acknowledged six members of the OLALC, including five Wiradyuri elders, had disputed the veracity of the blue-banded bee Dreaming in a February submission.
“Information about a public artwork by Wiradjuri artist Baranga Wiradjuri (Birrunga Wiradyuri), named the Blue Banded Bee Creation Story, was also submitted to support the validity of the Dreaming as an Aboriginal tradition,” she said in her report.
“Whilst not identical, the description of the artist’s interpretation of the Dreaming is largely consistent with WTOCWAC’s explanation.”
Additional details on the Dreaming story were provided to Ms Plibersek by an unnamed Wiradyuri elder whose submission was delayed due to medical issues.
The WWF, Ms Goodchild and Mr Wiradyuri indicated they were unable to comment without consulting Wiradyuri elders. The WTOCWAC did not respond to requests for comment, and Ms Plibersek declined to comment.
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