BY BIANCA FULLICKS 7O

The beautiful but shy sun sisters wish for nothing more than privacy. Will their
brother help them out? The Sun Sisters is a skillfully embroidered tale which
brings Aboriginal mythology to life.

The Sun Sisters is a beautiful adaptation bringing the aboriginal story telling
tradition to lifeFULLICKS
BY BIANCA through 7Opictures. Another artistically stunning picture book from
Bianca Fullicks. The Guardian.
Rationale
The sun Sisters blends the traditions of indigenous mythology with the picture book form to engage and entertain primary readers.
The cover captures the readers eye with its appealing design and provides insight into the Explanatory Myth within.

I have interpreted The Sun Sisters as an indigenous story. The myth explains the relationship between siblings which is symbolic of
the interconnectedness of the sun and moon. In keeping with the usual style of picture books, I have drawn upon the literal plot
features; siblings, sun and moon, to form the foundations of the cover. The responder has a clear indication through these core
visual images of what the story line will involve.

To represent the Aboriginal elements of the narrative I began by creating a background using a traditional aboriginal dot painting of
the sky, clearly establishing an Indigenous tone. This Indigenous canvas is reinforced by the characters. The relationship between the
twin sisters is conveyed through the close social distance; to achieve this I duplicated the image, blurred their edges, made them
transparent and superimposed one over the other. The gaze of both the sisters and brother act as a vector drawing the eye to the
salient sun image.

The cover places Aboriginal elements alongside astronomical imagery to effectively convey the setting. The salient image of the sun
draws the responders eye allowing them to focus on the embroidered detail superimposed over it which links to their nightly task of
embroidering. The yellow palette of the sun and the moon is reflected in the title and authors name creating balance and symmetry
through the three distinct panels of the cover. Yellow symbolizes happiness and cheerfulness which adds extra appeal for the young
targeted audience. The eye travels to the moons either side where the siblings complete the rest of the moon to make it full. They
are embedded within the moon as if obscured representing the privacy they seek.

BY BIANCA FULLICKS 7O
The written text is placed over a dark blue panel which picks up on the blue of the dot painting and allows the bold golden tones of
the title to stand out. The same concept is repeated at the bottom of the cover creating balance. The needle and thread act as a
vector which leads to the composers name in an embroidery styled font.

The back cover adopts the same layout as used on the front cover with the text placed on a dark blue banner. The Aboriginal theme
is continued with the repeated sister images, placed over a photographic image of the sun setting behind Uluru, an iconic Aboriginal
landmark. In the photograph the sun is setting, shyly hiding behind Uluru away from the gaze of the world. The blurb intrigues the
responder through the rhetorical question will their brother help them out? encouraging them to further exploration of the book.
The metaphor cleverly incorporates the embroidery image once again. The gaze of the sisters directs the audience to the title of the
text and reinforces through An Aboriginal tale that this is a unique indigenous story.

The front and back book covers combine to attract the eye of young readers and captures the essence of The Sun Sisters narrative.
The indigenous and astronomical images clearly convey the concepts of Aboriginal mythology, the issue of privacy and sibling
relationships which are at the heart of my interpretation of the short story.

BY BIANCA FULLICKS 7O