Red flowers bloom at Bondi in tribute

More than 140 Sydney volunteers came together this week to hand-craft over 700 red paper poppies, known in Israel as anemones, for a striking Yom Hazikaron installation on the cliffs at Bondi Beach. It was a project that drew together survivors of the Bondi attack, Jewish and non-Jewish community members, and even passers-by who stopped to ask what was going on.

The initiative was spearheaded by JNF Australia’s Sarah Vanunu alongside Sydney artist Tracey Hayim, who drew inspiration from the Darom Adom — the Red South — the annual wildflower season in southern Israel where vivid red anemones bloom across the landscapes that are often scarred by conflict and loss.

“We wanted to move people from being ‘spectators’ of grief to active participants in remembrance,” Vanunu told The AJN. “After the trauma our community faced at Bondi, it felt vital to create a tangible way to process that shared pain.”

Hayim, who travelled with Vanunu on a JNF Israel Tour last year, was moved by the ceramic red flower installations now standing at the Nova festival site in the Re’im Forest and at the Sderot Police Station. The pair resolved to bring that vision to Sydney.

On Sunday, volunteers of all ages gathered at Lorraine’s at the Robin Hood in Bondi for a full-day workshop under Hayim’s guidance, crafting the flowers by hand across three shifts. Many stayed well beyond their allocated time.

The stories that emerged were deeply personal. One woman shared that she had not returned to the venue since December 14, when she had been a guest at a Bar Mitzvah there as the Bondi attack unfolded outside. For her, Vanunu said, returning to create something beautiful was a meaningful step in healing. An 80-year-old non-Jewish man of German background came simply to contribute. A father drove from Western Sydney with his six-year-old daughter to connect with his Jewish roots.

“There was a lot of excellent Ruach,” Vanunu said. “There is something deeply healing about using your hands to create beauty out of a story of loss.”

At dawn on Monday, a small group assembled the flowers at Marks Park on the Bondi clifftop, ahead of an aerial photo shoot. More than 700 red anemones were planted into the ground as soulful Israeli music played.

“Standing at Marks Park at dawn, watching the sun rise over 700-plus hand-crafted poppies dancing in the gentle breeze, was truly magical,” Vanunu said. “It felt like a physical bridge being built across the oceans between Israel and the cliffs of Bondi.”

When passers-by stopped to ask about the installation, some said they had been unaware of the significance of October 7, though they were still shaken by the Bondi attack.

“In that moment, we were just neighbours commiserating in shared grief,” Vanunu said.

For Vanunu, the project carried particular weight. She was hosting her son Zacky’s Bar Mitzvah at the Bondi Pavilion on the night of December 14. The celebration was interrupted when strangers fleeing the attack ran into the event seeking refuge. She and her husband sheltered around 100 children and dozens of others in the venue, and were among the last to be evacuated by police that evening.

“A day of remembering victims of terror is not an abstract concept for many of us,” she said. “At least not anymore.”

The installation was created with the support of JNF Australia as part of its Yom Hazikaron commemorations.