University of New South Wales
Graphic Scriber
2024
Indigenous Medical Centre Scribe
A live graphic scribe honouring Indigenous knowledge and sparking real-time conversation
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Objectives
This workshop marked a significant step toward building a culturally rich and meaningful health institution for the Indigenous community, bringing together a uniquely diverse group of participants — academics, doctors, Indigenous elders, and healers — to share their respective knowledge and experience. The goal was to create a physical graphic scribe that honoured the Indigenous knowledge in the room and produced a highly visual piece of art that could be experienced in real time. This physical, live approach was intentionally chosen to support the yarning circles forming across the two days and to provoke conversations that would inspire further thought.
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Outcome
Feedback on both the workshop and the graphic scribe was overwhelmingly positive. The visual presence of the piece drew participants in throughout the two days — many took photos of it, discussed it during breaks, and even contributed ideas directly onto or around it. In one memorable moment, an elder approached me to speak about a sacred bambul plant, using it as a metaphor for the balance of masculine and feminine energy. This was a moment that was deeply appreciated and closely tied to the broader message of cultural health being explored in the room.
This reinforced just how powerful live, analogue scribing can be as a tool for co-design and idea generation. Far from being simple performance art, the physical scribe acted as a kind of social glue — drawing people in, energising conversation, and helping surface ideas that might not have emerged otherwise.
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