Otis Hope Carey
GAAGAL, 2021
Look up at Manly’s Whistler Street Carpark and you will see GAAGAL by artist Otis Hope Carey @otishopecarey
The phrase 'GAAGAL' translates to Ocean and is the totemic spiritual emblem of the Gumbaynggirr people. This is reflected in the topographical nature of the painting and its visual relationship to oceanic current charts and movements. ‘We call the ocean Gaagal – it’s a really important clan totem and holds a lot of healing elements for us.’ - Otis Hope Carey
Artist Bio
Otis Hope Carey, is a proud Gumbaynggirr/Bundjalung Man, artist and professional surfer. His three main bodies of work essentially focus on the ocean, ‘Gaagal’ an important clan totem for the Gumbaynggirr people of the mid-north coast of New South Wales; ‘Ngalunggirr Miinggi’, Healing Spirit, which focuses on its healing qualities; and ‘Ngiinda Darrundang Gaagal’, ‘I Thank the Ocean’, which incorporates his interpretation of ‘Gaagal Yuludarla’, a ceremonial ‘Ocean Dreaming’ dance. His work expresses a contemporary interpretation of Indigenous symbolism, and speaks of the artist’s profound connection to his family, culture and country.
Carey was a finalist for the Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship 2018 and in the 2020 Wynne Prize at the Art Gallery of NSW. Carey is represented by China Heights Gallery.
Location
Whistler Street Car Park
Manly NSW 2095