This piece of artwork was created specifically for PEER by contemporary indigenous artist Melanie Pickett.
Traditional indigenous art is often used as a form of teaching and has been used for generations of indigenous people to tell stories. Melanie painted this as her interpretation of the impact PEER has across South Australia in training, education and the wider community.

The largest circle represents PEER as an organisation, the smaller circles represent the communities and people that PEER reach. The ‘U’ shapes around the circles represent the people who attend PEER for work, apprenticeships and training.

The background displays PEERs reach across South Australia. The green and brown background represent the fertile plains and desert lands on which we live and work, with the solid brown shapes around the outside representing the hills and ranges across the state. The blue represents the ocean and those students from many countries that come to PEER.

About the Artist
Melanie Pickett is a local Contemporary Indigenous Artist and a Ballardong Yamatji woman from Western Australia who moved to South Australia as a young child.
While struggling with chronic illness Melanie found relief in painting, alongside raising 4 children who at the time of painting are between the ages of 13 and 22. She has worked in the Department for Education, within Local Government and in Law Enforcement, which gave her the opportunity to work in the Far North of South Australia in the APY Lands and surrounding areas, among remote and rural communities.

Melanie has been creating art professionally for 5yrs and volunteers with Kura Yerlo in Port Adelaide, a not-for-profit Aboriginal owned community organisation that works towards ‘walking together for a strong culture and a sustainable future’. They put culture at the heart of everything they do. Her Art pieces are showcased in Adelaide, Perth, Germany, London and Italy.

We thank Melanie dearly for her time in creating this meaningful piece for PEER.