A life-size bronze sculpture and storytelling piece called 'Three Women on Kurnai Country' will be installed in Drouin in November.
On Friday afternoon, the first day of National Reconciliation Week, community members gathered at the Drouin Soundshell to learn about the monument, which will be located at Civic Park.
The sculpture will honour three women who significantly impacted the lives of Kurnai people from the Drouin area, Dorothy (Dora) Hood, Euphemia (Euphie) Mullet Tonkin, and Regina (Gina) Rose.
The three women maintained Kurnai culture in the area during times of historic change and the systematic racism and oppression of Australian Government laws, bodies, policies, and practices.
Local artists Jessie McLennan, Rebecca Vandyk-Hamilton, and Jeannie Haughton are collaborating on the project with Kurnai elder Aunty Cheryl Drayton, whose ideas have driven the project. Aunty Cheryl is the daughter of Euphie Mullet Tonkin.
The artwork will be accompanied by an historic storytelling piece. The stories told will also be carried on through storytelling, which the creators of the sculpture said they hope the life-size monument will facilitate.
Aunty Cheryl opened the event last week and spoke of the many memories she and others have of the three women in the artwork. Each woman is depicted holding an item of significance to them and their story.
Dorothy is pictured holding a book, as she is remembered for being devoted to her religion, Euphie holds a galvanised tin washing tub, as she was known for being able to wash clothes and make them extremely white, and Regina is depicted holding a guitar, as she was known for leading singalongs.
"We used to have a cleared spot where the kids used to play... we'd get around the campfire and she'd have the guitar and she'd be singing these songs and we'd be dancing around and doing things," Aunty Cheryl said.
"And all of a sudden she used to sneak off and leave us, and then she'd appear at the other end of this clearing and frighten the living daylights out of us."
Aunty Cheryl said that growing up with these three women was a "delight" for the children living on Jackson's Track.
Artist, Vandyk-Hamilton said it is important to her that we tell the stories of First Nation's Women first, before the stories of other local women who have supported and continue to support the community.
"As a white person, the stories of Euphemia, Dorothy, and Regina are not mine to tell," Ms Vandyk-Hamilton said.
"Jessie, Jeannie, and I have been entrusted with the stories by Cheryl and by their families to continue these stories for future generations."
Ms Vandyk-Hamilton said that creating large bronze monuments is a very colonial way of commemorating a significant person, and most commonly recognises a white male.
"Less than five per cent of all monuments and statues in Australia are about real women," she said.
"The design of Three Women on Kurnai Country is to enable some balance to the current monuments in the Baw Baw Shire and wider Victoria, and is a fitting companion for the bronze statue of Lionel Rose in Queens Gardens in Warragul."
Clay miniatures of the sculpture in various stages of the planning process were on display at the event last week, including a model of what the final piece will look like.
The final clay model will be scanned and cut into large polystyrene foam pieces, measuring just under two metres tall.
At Meridian Sculpture, a foundry located in Fitzroy the artists involved will work over the surface of the foam with plasticine to create the molds for the statue, of which there are 11 pieces.
They will be assisted by Meridian Sculpture staff throughout the process, which will be live-streamed on Facebook.
Other organisations involved in the project are the Baw Baw Arts Alliance, Women in Gippsland, Baw Baw Shire Council, and the State Government.
The project is supported by a $155,416 Victorian Women in Public Art Grant, a state government program that is intended to help immortalise the contributions of women today and throughout history through permanent public art, and $40,000 from the Baw Baw Shire Council's Public Art Fund.
Baw Baw Shire Councillor Trisha Jones attended last week's event. She said she was "really impressed" by the work done so far.
"These women maintained Kurnai culture in Drouin, and we are very fortunate to have that."
"The artwork promotes today our local First Nation's stories and the enormous contribution to the culture that these three women made. It also promotes gender equality, and celebrates the importance of women, not only in our state but also in this local area," she said.