CARA SHIELDS

Cara Shields is an emerging Wiradjuri artist born in Narromine and raised in Dubbo, NSW. Her studies in Aboriginal art and cultural practices in Dubbo have strongly influenced her creative development and following the birth of her son, she began working as a full-time artist.

Cara draws inspiration from the Wiradjuri traditional practice of carving stylised lines into tree trunks, known as dendroglyphs - sacred carvings associated with important sites, boundaries, and ceremonial grounds. She also reflects on the cultural significance of scar trees, where bark was removed for making canoes, coolamons, and shields, leaving markings that continue to grow and transform over time.

Working with acrylic paint and traditional ochre sourced locally by her uncle, Wiradjuri Elder Peter Peckham, Cara’s Scar Tree and Scar Pattern Country series present a contemporary aerial interpretation of these traditional forms, connecting cultural knowledge with her own artistic expression.