The earliest known rock art is made by Aboriginal artists in Australia. Aboriginal art is the oldest continuous art tradition in the world.

Knitters: Zinnia Cantrell, Katie McKinley, Terry Nauss, Margo Smith, Elena Stolzer & Betsy Tucker

Tree: Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida)

Photo by Tom Cogill

1963: Yolngu people in Yirrkala write and paint a legal petition on eucalyptus bark protesting the mining of their land, and present it to the Australian Federal Parliament.

1966: David Malangi Daymirringu (1927-1999, Manyarrngu) is the first Indigenous Australian artist to be compensated for the copyright of his artwork.

Knitters: Elisabeth Craun, Katie McKinley, Liz Poarch, Betsy Tucker

Tree: Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida)

Photo by Tom Cogill

Torres Strait Islanders are the Indigenous people of the Torres Strait Islands, part of Queensland, Australia, and are culturally distinct from mainland Aboriginal people. Black represents the Islander people, green represents the land, blue represents the sea, and white symbolizes peace. The arc shape depicts the Torres Strait dari, or ceremonial feather headdress. The white five-pointed star represents the five cultural groups within the Torres Strait, and it is also a symbol for seafaring people who use stars for nautical navigation.

Knitters: Sarah Donalson, Mimi Hyde, Beverly Riddell

Tree: Kentucky Coffee (Gymnocladus dioicus) - Female

Photo by Tom Cogill

1971: The Aboriginal flag is designed by Harold Thomas (b. 1947, Luritja) and is first flown at Victoria Square in Adelaide on National Aborigines Day on July 12. Also, seven artists paint a mural using traditional designs on the wall of the Papunya School in central Australia, beginning the Western Desert art movement.

1988: Dreamings: The Art of Aboriginal Australia opens at the Asia Society Galleries in New York City as the first major exhibition of Aboriginal art in the United States.

Knitters: Becky Calvert, Zinnia Cantrell, Melinda Hope, Jane Howard, Amy Lane, Mukanday Moore, Beverley Riddell, Susan Rigby, Amy Stewart, Madeline Zehnder

Tree: Kentucky Coffee (Gymnocladus dioicus) - Male

Photo by Tom Cogill

1990: Rover Thomas (1926-1998, Wangkajunga/ Kukatja) and Trevor Nickolls (1949-2012, Ngarrindjeri) become the first Aboriginal artists to represent Australia at the Venice Biennale. Their inclusion in “the world’s most important art exhibition” signifies the acceptance of Aboriginal art as both fine art and contemporary art.

1992: The Torres Strait Islander Flag is designed by Bernard Namok (1962-1993, Meriam Mer/Kala Lagau Ya) and is raised for the first time. The High Court of Australia declares in the landmark Mabo case that Australia was not terra nullius (a land belonging to no one) at the time of British invasion, affirming Aboriginal ownership of the land.

Knitters: Zinnia Cantrell, Marney Gibbs, Alice Gore, Ruth Kavanaugh, Amy Lane, Terry Nauss, Elena Stolzer, George Worthington, Madeline Zehnder

Tree: Red Maple (Acer rubrum)

Photo by Tom Cogill

2007: A painting by Emily Kame Kngwarreye (1910-1996, Anmatyerre) titled Earth’s Creation was purchased for $1,056,000 Australian Dollars at a Sydney auction, marking the first Aboriginal artwork sold for more than a million dollars.

Knitters: Katie McKinley and her Burley Middle School art classes (Jason Aguilar, Dawson Burroughs, Bryna Dawkins, Isabella Dickerson, Marcus Dodson, Kariman Eitta, MIchael Gray, Samuel Hamner, Madison Lagano, Nain Lara Ruiz, Tristan Leemann, Jacob Lightfoot, Walter Martinez Vivas, David McGarrigle, Olivia Miller, Patrick Mugisha, Kirk Nurnberger, Corah Richardson, Samantha Shifflett, Dasaun Taylor, Alloire Thomas, Gabrielle Whitford, Aric Wood, Marco Baessler, Kevin Bollat Moran, Julia Bradshaw, Kevin Jimenez-Ovando, Robert Jones, Shane Lambert, Luis Lopez Arteaga, Justin Murkey, Soren Poole, Wesley Powell, Ahmann Prince, Ahmed Roach, Aidan Scheinfeld, Michael Smith, Jeremiah Tatem, Jemel Tyler, Devon Vogeley, Cordero Williams, Keven Wood, Kristen Woodfolk, Blake Worley, and Nicholas Yowell), Irita Branham, Mae Craddock, Melinda Hope, Gabrielle Schoppa, Teresa Williams

Tree: Black Walnut (Juglans nigra)

Photo by Tom Cogill

The black represents the Aboriginal people, the yellow circle represents the sun, the giver of life and protector, and the red represents the red earth, the red ochre used in ceremonies and Aboriginal peoples’ spiritual relationship to the land.

Knitter: Margo Smith

Tree: White Ash (Fraxinus americana)

Photo by Tom Cogill

Knitters: Dymphna Alexander, Ellie Boylan, Hyla Cohen, Mary Feathers, Kelly Kroese, Cathy McElhannon, Beverly Riddell, George Worthington

Tree: Golden Rain (Koelreuteria paniculata)

Photo by Tom Cogill

NAIDOC (National Aboriginal and Islander Day of Observance Committee) Week is an annual week that recognizes Indigenous Australian history, culture and achievement

Knitters: Linda Blum, Janet Chilson, Alice Gore, Liz Poarch, Megan Sacco, Margo Smith

Tree: American Holly (Ilex opaca)

Photo by Tom Cogill