As dusk settles over Sydney Harbour, the sails of the Opera House once again become a canvas for storytelling. From 17 December, Badu Gili: Story Keepers marks a new chapter in the landmark’s nightly First Nations projection series, developed in close partnership with the Biennale of Sydney and the Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain.
The six-minute animation brings together two Indigenous artists from opposite sides of the world: Gooniyandi elder Mervyn Street from the Kimberley in Western Australia, and Kinngaimmiut Inuk artist Ningiukulu Teevee from Nunavut in the Canadian Arctic. Curated by Bruce Johnson McLean, the Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain’s First Nations Curatorial Fellow, the work reflects Cartier’s long-standing commitment to supporting Indigenous voices and fostering cross-cultural artistic exchange.
Street’s paintings open the projection, grounding the work in Gooniyandi Country. Dust, fire and wind move across the sails, carrying stories shaped by a lifetime spent working as a stockman and advocating for cultural preservation through language and life on Country. Street describes the project as an act of sharing rather than self-expression. “I’m doing it for the people,” he says. “I’m passing on my knowledge.”
As the narrative shifts hemispheres, the projection moves into the stillness of the Arctic. Teevee’s bold drawings animate Inuit myths and legends, centring on the story of Raven and Owl – figures that have remained with her since childhood. Ice and snow frame scenes of transformation, curiosity and balance, drawing on stories first told to her by an Elder at school. Through animation, Teevee reinterprets these teachings, connecting Inuit oral tradition with contemporary visual language.
For Teevee, the project offers an opportunity to honour the voices and memories that continue to shape her practice. By placing Inuit storytelling on the sails of the Opera House, Story Keepers extends these narratives into a global public space, reinforcing their relevance across cultures and generations.
The collaboration reflects the Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain’s broader vision of making contemporary creation accessible while building meaningful dialogue between artists, institutions and audiences worldwide. Through its ongoing partnership with the Sydney Opera House and the Biennale of Sydney, Cartier plays a central role in ensuring projects like Badu Gili remain free, visible and embedded in everyday cultural life.
Animated by Sydney-based creative agency Vandal, Badu Gili: Story Keepers unfolds nightly as a meeting point between lands of heat and smoke, and landscapes of ice and snow. More than a spectacle, it is a reminder of the power of stories held by Elders, carried by artists, and shared – night after night – on one of the world’s most recognisable stages.
