A vibrant new art installation is turning heads at Metro South Health’s Southern Queensland Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Primary Health Care gymnasium, thanks to a heartfelt art project.
The aptly titled CoE Gym Community mural tells a captivating story of connection and creative collaboration between CoE Exercise Physiologists, Health Workers and the clients they support.
CoE Senior Exercise Physiologist (EP) Jairo Fernandez (pictured front left) and his team led the initiative, engaging local First Nations artist David Riley, to bring the project to fruition.
“We wanted to convey the feeling of the exercise groups within the community, so we engaged a local artist who designed a rough idea of what we wanted to add to it,” Jairo explained.
“This is really important for us because it shows that this isn't just a gym group, but it actually is a community that we have developed within CoE and within the surrounding areas. Everyone here supports each other.”
Brought to life through consultation and collaborative design, the mural consolidates input from its six existing exercise groups as well as the gym team, capturing the cultures, traditions and community spirit of its contributors.
“There were multiple weeks of consultation with the group members to ensure that they were represented, whether they are Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander, so we had large-scale community input. Each square represents input from a member of the exercise groups or from the local community, so there's really a piece of everyone in it,” Jairo said.
The mural is a celebration of the unique community culture at the gym, its larger-than-life presence transforming a previously sterile clinical space into a culturally safe and welcoming environment.
“As soon as you walk into the room, the art jumps out at you and makes the room feel less clinical. It brings so much character to the space,” Jairo said.
“A lot of the members know each other outside of the gym groups, and some have made friends here who they’re now engaging and interacting with in the community. It’s not just coming into the gym for a clinic, but they’re coming in to have a yarn, exchange information, and assist one another when needed.”
With the original canvas proudly hanging just outside the gym doors, the team are reminded of the deep sense of community spirit connecting every person who enters the space.
“It’s not just a clinic to us; it's a community space. We’re here to promote not just physical health but holistic health, and that’s what this artwork represents,” Jairo said.
“We have a great team here and a lot of support from the workplace itself to the community; to the point where they will say the service can’t leave, because it’s such a key part of the community, and we have to keep it going.”
With the enduring support of CoE leaders and the local community behind them, Jairo says the team have big plans for the future of the EP service.
“We have six groups currently, and we’re looking at adding an extra group specifically for men.
“We want to keep growing and improving our footprint in the community. We want people to know this is an area that anyone can access as a patient of CoE, no matter who you are—whether you’re a child, whether you’re elderly, or living with pain or chronic conditions. Everyone is able to access our program and our services here.”