Signal Fire, public art installation has been completed at McKillop Park, a place of significant local heritage and beauty.

In 2021, Council commissioned First Nations public art team mili mili to create a new public artwork at McKillop Park on Freshwater’s headland as part of the Coast Walk Public Art program. mili mili is an established First Nations art and design studio co-founded by award winning artist and designer Nicole Monks.

This commission is a gateway artwork for the Northern Beaches Coast Walk, and an iconic destination artwork for residents and visitors. The artwork responds to the natural environment, local history and contemporary communities of Freshwater and the Northern Beaches.

You can read more on the background and engagement history of this project below.

First Nations Public Art team mili mili were commissioned to create a new public artwork at McKillop Park at Freshwater’s headland as part of the Coast Walk Public Art project. mili mili is an established First Nations art and design studio co-founded by award winning designer and artist Nicole Monks. Monks is a multidisciplinary artist of Yamaji Wajarri, Dutch and English heritage, living and working on Worimi and Awabakal Country (Newcastle).

The headland offers the community and visitors the opportunity to have breathing space from the busy-ness of the city, to slow down and reconnect with nature and the stories of this significant place. This project will symbolise the beginning of a new journey, and the revitalisation of the history and culture of this place.” – Nicole Monks

The project is part of Council’s Coast Walk Public Art program. This is a landmark artwork, which responds to the site’s natural landscape, environmental conditions and local history. McKillop Park is an iconic viewpoint; a place where people pause, take photographs, check local surf conditions and enjoy the panoramic ocean view. It is a good vantage point during whale watching season, and is an important site at the southern end of the Coast Walk, a 36km path that extends from Manly to Palm Beach.

mili mili engaged with local Aboriginal stakeholders and local communities throughout 2022 and 2023. mili mili was selected from 38 high-quality submissions by Council’s Public Art Selection Panel.

To finalise their design, mili mili engaged with local Aboriginal cultural knowledge holders and local community groups. The following two engagement events were held for the broader community:

Meet the Artist - Online session - 31 March 2022

We invited you to join us online to meet First Nations art team mili mili and learn more about their concept designs for the upcoming artwork at McKillop Park. You can view a video of the session under the Videos tab.

Community Gathering - Harbord Diggers Club - 1 April 2022

We invited you to join us in person for an artist talk and presentation by First Nations art team mili mili, storytelling and a Bush to Bowl native plant talk.

We also invited you to share your comments about the artwork concept between 10 March 2022 and 10 April 2022. We received 28 submissions which can be viewed along with the engagement outcomes in the Community Engagement Report.

Thank you to everyone who joined us and provided feedback.

As a result of this engagement, some changes were made to the artwork concept and proposed location. The artwork has become more structurally open, tucked further into the existing bushland, and reduced in height, to balance with the natural beauty of the headland and to protect sightlines.

The artist impressions below show the artwork concept for McKillop Park, Freshwater that was presented to the public in 2022, courtesy mili mili. The concept has since been revised.

The concept is inspired by the signal fires lit by Aboriginal people on headlands along the east coast as a system of communication, and by traditional Aboriginal structures called gunyas. The artwork integrates seating which will provide a place for the public to engage, sit and rest on site, without obstructing the views of ocean and sky.

Meet the artist

The video below is a recording of the online Meet the Artist session held on 31 March 2022 where Nicole Monks introduces herself and her concept design for the upcoming McKillop Park public artworks.

Connection to place

Check out the video below where lead artist Nicole Monks, of First Nations art team mili mili, describes the connections to place and people that are being incorporated into the design of the new public artwork at McKillop Park in Freshwater.