Defining Symbols of Australia is a collaborative exhibition between the National Museum of Australia, the Gerringong & District Historical Society and the local community.

The National Museum has identified several symbols that define Australia, such as Uluru, the Sydney Harbour Bridge, wattle and fire, explored through explanatory wall panels.

A major part of the exhibition has come from the local community, donated by people in the district who have searched their homes, cupboards and sheds for objects they think represent Australia.

One of the aims of the exhibition is to start the conversation of how we think of ourselves.

The exhibition is a playful exploration of what makes us Australian and how we express our identity in the objects we have around us.

Around Australia, popular motifs of wildlife, plants, people and places have been printed across plates, money, textiles and mugs.

Murals have been painted on building surfaces to define one district from another.

Large bananas, prawns and pineapples differentiate the entry to coastal towns while inland, wheat silo art now draws tourists into areas to contemplate rural and agricultural identities.

The language of symbols and national sentiment is always changing and reinventing itself and the variety of objects donated by the public for the exhibition demonstrates this.

The exhibition opens on 7 October, with the official opening two days later with “A night at the Museum” featuring guest speaker, Ann Glynn.

She is a Dharawal-based Australian artist from the NSW South Coast, whose imagery creates an Australia you will recognise but have never seen before.

Glynn draws on images from the colonial past to give us an understanding of the present through her multimedia skills of layering images.

At the opening night, GDHS will also be launching a beautiful work by Gerringong quilter, Merelyn Pearce, who has generously donated one of her works to be raffled.

She had no interest in quilting until she pieced her first block in 1989 and saw the unlimited creative potential.

Her preferred method of creation is hand applique, which allows for a lot of detail.

In 2000, with copyright permission, she began a series which celebrated the work of Margaret Preston.

It includes three Best of Australia winners.

Her quilts have been exhibited internationally and she has been invited to nominate a quilt to be acquired by a committee seeking to preserve the quilting of Australia.

The work to be raffled is from the Margaret Preston series, called “Christmas Bells”, in 2018.

The border fabric was chosen to complement the theme of Christmas decorations and will be on display at the exhibition.

“Defining Symbols of Australia, GLaM Gallery, 10 Blackwood Street, Gerringong. Open to the public from October 7, 10am-3pm, Tuesday-Saturday. Official Opening October 9, 5.30-7.30pm, $10 entry including refreshments.