In July, Basketball Queensland (BQ) invited Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists to submit their artwork to the first-ever BQ First Nations Championships Design Competition.

The design by Beau Pennefather Motlop (Cairns Basketball) has been announced as the winner and will be used as the official artwork for the 2023 First Nations Championships. His depiction will be featured on championship merchandise by Hoop2Hoop and all promotional assets.

Read Beau Pennefather Motlop's explanation of his artwork:

My artwork depicts how basketball/sport has become a major part of our lives and our culture.

I have represented our mob's connection to land and sea. I have also used Indigenous symbolism to represent our connection to the past, present and future.

I used the four circles connected to show how basketball brings our cultures together in a healthy positive way.

I also have our art woven through the athletes to symbolise how basketball/sport has become such a huge part of our culture.

I included three cockatoos to represent flight.

My patterns are a representation of environmental and ecological cycles, all very important aspects for our Ancestors' survival.

I am an artist of both Aboriginal and ZENADTH KES (Torres Strait) descent so I am able to represent both of Australia’s Indigenous cultures appropriately.

BQ would like to thank all artists for their submissions.

The 2023 BQ First Nations Championships is a celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, sports, and culture, through the engagement of First Nations peoples, collaborating with other Australians to join the sporting showcase held on the Gold Coast to at North Gold Coast Basketball from Wednesday 13th of December to Sunday 17th of December.

To find out more, click here.