The Bondi Memorial is dedicated to all the victims and survivors targeted during a spate of homophobic and transphobic violence from the 1970s to the 1990s in Sydney and NSW.
The project was jointly funded through a collaboration between Waverley Council and ACON.
Located in Marks Park in Tamarama – where many of these incidents took place – it commemorates those whose lives were lost and pays tribute to the courage and resilience of those who survived, as well as their families and loved ones.
The memorial artwork, entitled ‘Rise’, has been designed by John Nicholson of United Art Project (UAP) following an Expression of Interest process to short-list artist’s and community consultation process. UAP’s six-level limestone terraced sculpture representing the six bands in the pride flag responded beautifully to the project’s guiding principles of remembrance, diversity, inclusion, justice and acceptance.
Waverley Council’s in-house Landscape Architectural design team and Arts and Culture team worked closely with ACON and UAP to sensitively design and place the memorial into a reflective space within Marks Park taking advantage of the panoramic vistas of the coastline and contemplative views of the never-ending ocean horizon.
The siting of the artwork was paramount to the success of the project ensuring there was a nexus between the memorial and events that took place.
