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Morgan Reinwald

The portrait putting Indigenous people 'on the map'

Beryl Van-Oploo has helped unveil an etching of her for the National Portrait Gallery. (Mick Tsikas/AAP PHOTOS)

An Indigenous trailblazer has been etched in history at one of Australia's most prestigious galleries. 

The National Portrait Gallery of Australia has unveiled a depiction of Beryl Van-Oploo, the first artwork to appear in the gallery made in an etching style. 

Aunty Beryl is known for transforming global food culture through sharing the knowledge of native ingredients and First Nations cooking practices. 

A portrait of Aunty Beryl Van-Oploo OAM has been unveiled at the National Potrait Gallery. (Morgain Reinwald/AAP VIDEO)

She has fed the royal family and inspired Michelin star chefs across the world, but in the etching she is depicted with a cup of tea and biscuits.

It reduced the 83-year-old to tears when it was revealed in Canberra on Tuesday.

"It's putting us on the map as Indigenous people, that's how I see it," she said. 

"We always had to make a billy tea on an open fire for a stranger if they came along.That was my aunty's rule and we had to respect that. So we did".

Golding
Artist Dennis Golding was a former student at a school founded by Aunty Beryl Van-Oploo. (Mick Tsikas/AAP PHOTOS)

Governor-General Sam Mostyn spoke at the event and highlighted the nature of drinking tea in Australia.

"We should think about every cup of tea we have with all our friends and family an act of ceremony," she said.

"It's not just a cup of tea, it's about being with other people, it's loving other people."

The etching is the work of Indigenous artist Dennis Golding, who was once a student at a school Aunty Beryl helped establish in the inner-Sydney suburb of Redfern.

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