Honey Ants Outdoor Mat 2.7m

Honey Ants is a unique, contemporary Aboriginal design recycled mat in earthy black, brown and white. It’s ideal for bringing diversity into your classroom.

This charming design was created by Dean Jakamara Briscoe, a respected Australian Indigenous artist from the Anmatyerre, Central Desert, region. Dean is a professional artist and designer, as well as the owner of Anmatyerre Arts and Crafts. In Honey Ants, he celebrates the tradition of digging for food, including the wild bush honey produced by these curious Australian insects.

Honey Ants can be used in a classroom to invite discussion about many topics, including culture, food, family life and Indigenous art. The symbols in the design depict people with nulla nullas (digging sticks) going out after the rain to search for ants. They need to dig up to a metre below the surface to retrieve the ants, which hang upside down in subterranean chambers. The digging can be hard work, but the sweet, smooth rewards are worth it!

Our popular indoor/outdoor plastic rugs are made from recycled plastics, like PET drink bottles and shopping bags. Our mats are environmentally responsible and ethically manufactured. Soft and durable, you can fold them up to move them from the classroom to the playground at snack time or roll them up to pop in the car for your next day trip. Sand and dust brush away, while heavier soiling can be hosed off.

Celebrate culture and the planet by choosing a contemporary Aboriginal design recycled mat in beautiful shades of black, brown and white and being reversible, you get two colour choices for display in the one mat. Choose the dark colours one day, white the next or whatever suits your decor and mood. Measures 2.7m. Ages 3yrs+.

About the Artist

Dean Jakamara Briscoe was born in Alice Springs, NT but spent most of his life out bush with his family in the Aboriginal communities north-west of Alice like Laramba, Yuelamu, Pulardi and Mampa (Coniston). Dean has lived a very traditional life experiencing hunting, gathering, language and culture that has ben practised for many generations by his people.