Distances to Braidwood:

Sydney: 290km

Nerriga: 54km

Nowra: 130km

Batemans Bay: 61km

Major’s Creek: 16km

Araluen: 29km

Moruya: 110km

Cooma: 130km

Mongarlowe: 13km

Goulburn: 82km

Why Braidwood?

Judith Wright chose to live near Braidwood for the last three decades of her life and the region has become home to a vibrant community of other writers and artists. In what is now known as Tallaganda Shire, landscapes that were once managed by the Yuin and Walbanja people, were subsequently impacted by gold-mining and European farming practices. Many stories are embedded in the town heritage buildings and even more so in the surrounding landscapes. On the road between Canberra and the coast, Braidwood is surrounded by other historical villages and some significant remnants of the indigenous forests. Like all Australian country towns, it is going though a profound transition and its future is being shaped by debates involving long-term farmers, environmentalists, local business operators (who benefit from tourism) and the arts community. It offers a great case study in issues related to history, local economic development and conservation agendas.

Of course, Judith Wright’s name is also closely associated with the New England district and with Mt Tambourine (in the Gold Coast hinterlands) — she engaged deeply with each of the places where she lived and worked for long periods of time. The Festival will make it clear why Braidwood was one of the places that a person with Judith’s place-awareness chose to live in. It will also pose questions about what Braidwood will now choose to do with the memory of this famous adopted daughter.

At a time when rural towns and regions seek distinctive identities and images, questions arise about the local significance of national figures. Local communities will need to make choices about how they will work with the legacy of their most famous residents. Bowral can comfortably promote itself as the town that launched Don Bradman’s glittering sporting career, even though “The Don” spent much more of his life in Adelaide. Tenterfield can celebrate the song written about it by famous son Peter Allen but wonder at the life and career of a flamboyant and openly gay performer who chose to spend most of his life outside Australia. Braidwood can celebrate the fact that it was the home of choice of a great writer but one who was also something of an “outsider” who spoke her mind without fear of favour. Using Judith Wright and Braidwood as a case in point, this Festival will explore the question of how local communities might work with the complex legacy of national figures who have lived among them.