We’re proud to share selected images and stories from Gestures of Care, an ethnographic research project that investigated practices of care in Family by Family, a peer-to-peer support program for vulnerable families.
The artworks were made by families involved in Family by Family, in collaboration with The Art Bus artists and researchers, and these were exhibited at the Kerry Packer Civic Gallery in Adelaide, South Australia.
The research team included anthropologists from the School of Social Sciences at Adelaide University and Monash University, in partnership with Uniting Communities and the Australian Centre for Social Innovation (TACSI).
Through visual workshops, we explored the ways that everyday gestures of care, peer support and sharing lived experience generates transformation in people's lives.
Keep scrolling to explore images and accompanying stories from the exhibition.
Lino prints
#1: Feeling Safe (Tamie)
“This image represents my linkup with a great grandmother who came into the program as a seeking family. She feared for the safety and security of her great grandchild and most of all that he might be taken away from her. We spent time together in the linkup and slowly a sense of safety and trust was built, which enabled her to be more open to accessing other services and supports.”
#2: Sharing my journey to help others (Haleh)
“I am Iranian and came to Australia as a refugee. After 32 hours, the boat took us to Christmas Island where we had to stay. I was with my auntie and her daughter, three women travelling together. In Family by Family, I share my experiences of arriving in Adelaide as a refugee with others in similar situations.”
#3: Finding a home (Lisa)
“I was in a linkup with a young mum who had small children and was going through a really tough time and was about to lose her rental home. She was at her wits end trying to find a place to live that was safe and affordable. She struggled to negotiate with either the private rental market or government assisted options due to her poor mental health and anxiety. Eventually I found a house and talked to the landlord, and helped her with all the paperwork and the application and then when she got the house, I helped her move in. We found a safe home for her and her kids.”
#4: The care is reciprocated (Michelle)
“In Family by Family, we are allowed into people’s lives and have opportunities to share skills and support and help make change. My lino print shows us talking together and learning from each other, it’s reciprocated. Working in this program is so different to any other job I have done.”
#5: Helping Others (Huyeng)
“I came here from Cambodia in late 2024. I liked Family by Family because I wanted to help people. This image is me providing support for others. I am training to be a social worker.”
#6: Walking side by side (Sarah)
“In Family by Family linkups, sharing and seeking families spend time with each other but sometimes it can be hard to feel comfortable to talk and other times it’s hard to just get out of the house. I find that being in nature and walking alongside each other is a calming way of being together so this work is showing that experience.”
#7 Space for change (Arthur)
“In our second linkup with a seeking family, there was a lot of uncertainty and issues with trust. My lino print is about bringing empathy and trust into the linkup, over several weeks, and creating space for a new support person to come in. We were linked for 20 weeks and helped lay the foundation for change.”
Care blanket
#1: Sharing a meal (Letitia)
“In family link ups we might shop and cook and share meals in each other’s homes. We learn about our different cultures, enjoy food, swap recipes, have bbq’s, and all the kids get together, and we have a meal with both families – it's fun and a cool way to care for each other. In the Care Blanket I made the plate of food to represent all of this. I got some funny suggestions in the workshop about how to make some of the food out of a blanket… sewing’s not really my thing!”
#3: We listen and don’t judge (Seleah)
“In Family by Family, we actively listen to provide meaningful support, and we don’t judge other people. We listen and value people and help and support each other.”
#4: It’s nice to know someone is thinking about me (Hayley)
“When I was a seeking family I was in a pretty low place and some days just getting a text message makes me feel better. It’s nice to know someone was thinking about me. In family link ups some advice is more powerful when it’s not said. When it’s shared as lived experience through peer-to-peer support it’s not a pipe dream – people can see you did it so they can too. And that’s why I made the phone that’s in the woollen care blanket – in my last link up, any time Kate needed to get something off her chest, or have a light-hearted conversation she could reach out, and I always checked in with her too. So even when I wasn’t there, I wasn’t too far away.”
#5: She made me a cup of tea (Miranda)
“We grew up sharing cups of tea together and when my mum was still around, it was good to have her to talk to and she’d always say, well, let’s have a cup of tea, and there’s something about the ritual of drinking tea together that’s comforting.
#7: I was welcomed into their home (Anneliese)
“As coaches in Family by Family we make home visits, and we are welcomed into many people's homes. Two coaches do this together as we often bring different skills to our work and also there is a practical and safety element.”
#8: Family is more than blood (Shannon)
“Building a family is important, but family is more than blood. It’s about other people too and I’ve been helped by Family by Family who are like my bigger family, it’s a big network of people who support each other.”
#10: Having a chat over coffee and cake is comforting (Ann)
“Having a chat over cake and coffee is comforting. It’s like therapy really. I was going through a tough time, and I got a phone call out of the blue from one of the Family by Family coaches and she said, I'm here for you, just to talk, what's up? So, having a coffee and a chat can be really comforting and makes life feel a bit easier.”
#12: We have your back (Cheryl)
“To me, family is really important, and family is my mum, my husband, my son, but it can also be really close friends, and I would do anything for them. In Family by Family there’s a lot of group support... like you've made friends with everyone and if you need something, you know that a person will be there for you and you will be there for them. We have each other’s back. I’ve made two figures representing Sharing and Seeking women - their hearts are threaded and connected together as one helps the other grow.”
#13: I worked on her car and got her back on the road (Cory)
“I met Mary at Sharing Family training, and we were all introducing each other in the group. She was a pretty closed in person, isolated and she was having car troubles, which sounded like being ripped off by mechanics. I was feeling very shy here and didn’t want to open up too much, being the only bloke but I offered to have a look at her car and managed to fix it and get her back on the road. Since then our two families have become friends and we help each other.”
#14: We share and care our love (Tiffany)
“This is what we do in Family by Family. We share and care for each other. Sometimes that means helping a mum who is on her own, going round to her place and dropping off secondhand clothes for her kids, or taking her shopping, or just being there for a chat – letting someone know that you are around and that you care.”
#15: Keeping things tight knit and connected (Vikki)
“I’m interested in symbols and symbols of connections, and I often pick up these paper clips, which connect things and that’s what I’ve made in the care blanket – the paper clip represents us staying tight knit and linked as a family and with a community. I joined Family by Family as a seeking family, I was a bit lost, and in the program, I learnt lots about being a parent and how to be a stronger family. I feel connected to my sharing family even though our link up has finished and I’m now a sharing family helping others. I really got an understanding of family values and staying connected and tight knit.”
“Playing together” collages
Children are integral to Family by Family, acting as peer supports and providing friendship and care in sharing and Seeking Family link ups. These collages were made predominately by children and they represent the joy of spending time together.
#1 “This is me and a member of my seeking family named Sumu. Sumu was one month old when we first met and now Sumu is three years old. We are still friends.” – Patrick
#3 “I am snorkelling with other sharing families at Pt Noarlunga.” – Sara
#4 “This is me and my family, and we are singing in tune!” – Amira
#5 “I am here with my daughters. They give meaning to my life; my days will be sunshine and stars, together and smiling. Family by Family has made life easier.” – Sita
#7 “Family by Family brings joy and sunshine even in stormy seas. They give us skills to protect ourselves (like umbrellas!) when things feel tough.” – Megan
#8 “I’m playing with my friend Sawyer in the ocean. We don’t have legs - they’re in the water. Sawyer is special because he’s my best friend at school and home.” – Hunter
#10 “Bret is my best friend; he’s wearing his backpack double strapped – how he likes it. We’re having a bonfire together at my house.” – Lauren
#11 “Aiden, my best friend, and I are walking with his dog, Robi. It’s nighttime. There are stars and a moon.” – Adam
#12 “We’re spending time together going for a country drive with our dog, singing and listening to music.” – Olivia
#13 “We are running, me and my brother and my little sister Spencer is trying to join in, but we are too fast.” – Damien
#14 “Spencer is hiding behind the tree, and we’re playing hide and seek together.” – Kate
#15 “I’m here with my best friend. We are enjoying the moment together. I can trust her and our parents like each other too.” – Ari
Ceramic work
These ceramics works were made by families from Family by Family with researchers and artists Miranda Harris and Mark Valenzuela.
We explored experiences of care and peer support between families. The concept of a tortoise shell as a protective shield offering resilience and stability led to thinking about ways to represent care and peer to peer relationships between families. Sculpting and working without preexisting ideas allowed a slow physical engagement that made space for abstract thinking and the creation of sculptural pieces that represent practices of care in Family by Family.
#3: Journey of Connection, Jess
“My clay work represents the path of the sharing family supporting the seeking family. The spiral design symbolises the continuous and evolving journey of connection and empowerment. The path of the sharing family is steady and rooted, offering guidance, wisdom, and care to the seeking family. As the seeking family has the sharing family alongside them, they are uplifted, nurtured, and encouraged to unfurl their own leaves of strength, identity, and self-worth. Each leaf represents a milestone of growth, moments of learning, resilience, and triumph. At the conclusion of the link up - grounded in their own power they can then share their knowledge with others on their own journey, continuing the cycle of shared humanity, healing, and hope.”
#4: Building Bridges (Claire)
“Taking time to listen without judgement, being inclusive and caring for other people is a way of building bridges to keep our communities strong.”
#3: Sharing meals together (Miranda)
“Finding time in our busy days to sit and share a meal together is important because of the conversations that can be shared around a table and if it’s a relaxed time, it’s good to talk with each other and find out how we’re feeling and what’s happening in the day to day.”
# 7: Care and Community - Basic Elements, Jane
My work is about the earth and fire and water - these basic elements of life help keep us going, which reminds me of Family by Family. While we need earth, fire and water we also need care and a sense of community. These are basic elements in Family by Family, and they are what make us strong.
#9 Connecting, Claire
My work is about the paths and connections we make in our lives. Surprising connections can sometimes be formed by taking the less well trodden path and through these we can find a sense of belonging which helps sustain our lives even in the most difficult times.
#10 Resilience and agility, Megan
I’ve created a symbol of the recurring pattern of boteh, a paisley design associated with the Cypress tree. In Persian culture this tree symbolises life and the continuation of life. It is known for its capacity to bend without breaking in even the strongest wind. This resilience and flexibility recall Family by Family, which responds in agile and responsive ways to families and community.
#11 Braving the Storm, Sophie
Some days life is like braving the storm. I’ve made a boat in a rough, stormy sea. The boat represents the sharing families who are throwing out supports to the families who are seeking help. The seeking families are in the midst of the storm, braving and battling the waves and currents. They can get through these hard times through the lifeline supports from the sharing families. This is how families work together, even in extraordinary situations, we support each other to find our confidence, our strength and a way to make changes in life.