First Nations artist and storyteller Jacob Nash has been named as the artist for a public installation at the new Sydney Biomedical Accelerator.

The University of Sydney, in partnership with the Sydney Local Health District, also announced on Monday that Nash's artwork, on the Camperdown campus, will be named Collision.

The Sydney Biomedical Accelerator is an innovative health, research and education complex that will connect the University and Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Camperdown. It is the centrepiece of a $780M partnership between the University of Sydney, Sydney Local Health District and the NSW Government "set to transform Australia's biomedical landscape by fast-tracking world-leading research into real-world health care solutions.

Collision will incorporate the collection of ashes from fire as a central element, symbolising the fusion of old and new knowledge systems. The artwork centres around this collison point and the transformative outcomes that will be made inside this building.

It will reflect the Sydney Biomedical Accelerator's role in advancing biomedical research and translating discovery into public healthcare outcomes.

Local Aboriginal community members, as well as Aboriginal staff and students from the University of Sydney and Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, will be invited to contribute to the making and shaping of the work.

"I've spent my whole practice at the collision point - between cultures, between old knowledge and new forms, between what's been carried and what's being built," Nash said.

"The concept begins with the acknowledgement that our First Scientists have practised science and applied technology across this continent for tens of thousands of years. And that we live in a country that has always been a place of learning, discovery, and innovation, shaped by Aboriginal knowledge systems that are both progressive and adaptive.

"When I think about what this building represents, what it will house, and the people who will work within it pursuing science, discovery and technological advancement I see a continuation of that living lineage that has existed across this continent for millennia.

"This is a moment of collision when two forces come together and, from that impact, something new is born."

Nash, whose Ancestral land is in the Daly River region, has lived, worked and created on Eora Country in Sydney for the past 20 years.

He is a respected artist and designer with an extensive career across visual art, performance and large-scale public installations.

Nash has designed sets for Bangarra Dance Theatre's annual productions since 2010, including Bennelong, for which he received the 2018 Helpmann Award for Best Scenic Design. He also served as Design Director for Bangarra's five Vivid Sydney video installations on the Sydney Harbour Bridge Pylon public installations, and was Creative Artist in residence at Sydney festival (2021-2026) curating the Blakout Program.

His work ALWAYS, created for the 2019 Sydney Festival, formed the backdrop for The Vigil and the Wugulora Ceremony.

Nash is currently a Board Director of Belvoir St Theatre. His accolades include the 2011 Green Room Award for Best Set Design (Artefact).

Collision will form a significant cultural and symbolic feature of the SBA, reinforcing its role as a place where knowledge, science and community come together to shape the future of health.

Professor Victoria Cogger, Executive Director of the Sydney Biomedical Accelerator, said the SBA has been developed in close consultation with an Aboriginal Advisory Panel who have generously shared cultural knowledge, perspectives, and guidance throughout the development of the project to ensure the SBA honours, respects and reflects the culture, heritage and connection to Country of the Gadigal People.

"It is highly fitting, and I'm delighted, that respected artist Jacob Nash has been commissioned to create our first major public artwork in close collaboration with the Indigenous community," she said.

Leading public art consultancy Cultural Capital is curating the artwork which is expected to be completed by mid-2028.

The appointment was made through a formal evaluation and endorsement process.