Indigenous art is taking a front seat across the Shire for this year’s Port Douglas Carnivale, with 16 Yalanji Arts banners being installed along Port Douglas Road and Front Street at Mossman.

The banners, which will also be flying for Reconciliation Week and NAIDOC celebrations, have been produced by a group of Yalanji Arts Indigenous artists.

Yalanji manager Sabine Hoeng said the project was providing great exposure for the group.

“Over the past five years their work has been exhibited across Australia, earning national recognition for their distinctive styles in handmade ceramics, hand screen-printed fabrics, and prints on paper,” Ms Hoeng said.

“Yet, here in their own backyard they remain relatively unknown. 

“This exhibition is a chance to change that.”

Artist Lorna Shuan said it was an honour to have her work displayed locally.

“I have waited a long time for my design to be hung on the streets of Mossman, where I grew up with my family and friends,” she said.

“It means a lot to me and my family. 

“It’s a way of me leaving a legacy for them.”

Fellow artist Margaret Rocky hopes the banners inspire others to become involved in art.