As a way of honouring the lives lost and survivors of LGBTQ hate and violence in Sydney and broader NSW, health organisation ACON has unveiled ‘The Bondi Memorial: Rise’ in Marks Park, Tamarama.
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A collaborative project with Waverley Council, Acon aims to address the ongoing impacts of hate and violence on LGBTQ communities through a memorial. Rise, the work of artist John Nicholson from Urban Art Projects, was the winning design out of all six shortlisted designs for the memorial.
The Bondi Memorial is located on the southwestern side of Marks Park, which is accessible via Marks Lane on the eastern side of Fletcher Street or via Bondi to Bronte coastal walk. The park has been chosen as the location of the memorial given its place in history as the site of numerous attacks.
Rise is a series of stone terraces that replicates the exact topography of the rock face strata of the cliffs below Marks Park, where a number of gay men were assaulted and thrown from to their deaths.
“The artwork is called ‘Rise’ as I want the community to continue to rise about all the terrible histories that have taken place. It’s important to remember the past so the worst of it is never repeated,” said Nicholson.
Nicholson drew on the juxtaposition of the harshness of the cliff face and the brutality of what happened to the victims contrasting with the beauty of this pristine area of the Sydney coastline.
A Dark Chapter in History
From the late 1970s through to the early 1990s, more than 80 gay men and transgender women disappeared, were assaulted or murdered in NSW, many at coastal parks in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.
“With this memorial, we hope to help heal the grief and trauma that continues to be felt today. And with many cases still unsolved, this memorial also serves to raise greater community awareness of the issue of LGBTQ hate crimes, promote the continuing need to pursue the truth and justice, and serve as a reminder of the importance of valuing and celebrating diversity in our community,” Bondi Memorial noted on the website.
About ACON
ACON is a New South Wales-based health promotion organisation specialising in HIV prevention, HIV support and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) health. The organisation is primarily funded by the NSW Government through the NSW Ministry of Health.