A new exhibition sharing the Bundjalung creation story of the Three Brothers is now open at the Tweed Regional Museum.

Titled 'The Wiiyaan,' the exhibition explores the origins of the Bundjalung Nation's tribes and dialects through story, digital works and material illustration.

The exhibition is led by Gudjingburra Bundjalung men Kyle Slabb and Bijang Slabb, who worked as artists and cultural advisors on the project.

Mr Slabb said the project was driven by the need to strengthen knowledge transfer at a time when cultural connection can be lost between generations.

"One of the considerations that we have to think about now and the time that we're in is what we pass on to the next generation," Mr Slabb said.

"We're the last generation of contact with traditional people in our community.

"Our kids' generation never knew our grandmothers and grandfathers."

He said the risk of loss during that transition was central to why the work was made.

"During that transition, what doesn't get passed on, you can lose," he said.

Mr Slabb notes the exhibition was part of ensuring Bundjalung children understand their origin story and what it connects to.

"This project is part of that exercise for me - making sure every Bundjalung kid knows our origin story, understands our lore and knows what connects us back," he said.

"For us, this exhibition really is about our ancestors and the spiritual ancestors of Bundjalung country," he said.

"It's really at the heart of Bundjalung lore, culture and tradition."

The creation story tells of three brothers who arrived by canoe with their families before splitting up and travelling north, south and west.

In the southern dialect, the brothers are known as Mamoon, Birrung and YarBirrain.

In the northern dialect, they are known as Yarbiri, Marming and Birin.

The story explains the origins of Bundjalung tribes and dialects across the Northern Rivers, with key locations tied to natural landmarks across Country.

Mr Slabb said the exhibition reflects living cultural knowledge rather than a story locked in the past.

"A lot of the artifacts and the things that are in the museums, they have story and there's still people that carry those stories and attached to those things," he said.

"For us, they're not ancient artifacts."

The exhibition includes digital and material illustrations created over several years by the local Tweed Aboriginal community and shared with Elders and knowledge holders for teaching younger generations.

Museum curator Erika Taylor said the exhibition reflects a community-led approach to cultural storytelling.

"The Wiiyaan is a powerful example of what museums can be when they are guided by cultural knowledge holders," she said.

She added cultural safety relied on both formal processes and relationship-based work.

"We have formal processes where you tick the boxes and you have informal processes where you build relationships," she said.

"But then the other side to that is knowing how to build a relationship and have cups of tea, yarn and build a space where there's trust for us to host cultural stories in the museum."

She said she wanted visitors to slow down and listen closely to the story.

"I hope visitors have an experience here and they slow down and really listen," she said.

"There's lots to see in the exhibition, but the animation is four minutes and I just want every visitor to listen for four minutes."

The Wiiyaan runs until 18 July 2026 at Tweed Regional Museum.