A Portrait of Landscape and Time in Hill End

📖 The Scoop

A Portrait of Landscape and Time in Hill End: Myth-making, Heroes and Villains unearths lesser known stories of the remote and iconic town of Hill End. They disrupt common narratives of the region, questioning who the real heroes and villains are in recorded history and how we create myths and icons. "The line that divides good and evil cuts through the heart of every man," is a quote from Russian writer Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn which introduces the viewer to the artist's narrative works. The story travels from early white settlement to present day, allowing events from 200 years ago to co-exist with events from the 21st century, highlighting the constant presence of ghosts from the past in contemporary Hill End. The book introduces Bathurst War hero and Wiradyuri leader, Windradyne and the shameful declaration of Martial Law in 1824. The events around this time are a significant, but often ignored, part of Australia's history. It was a devastating attempt at genocide against Aboriginal people. There are further tales of murder and racism in the gold rush era featuring Sammy Poo, also known as Cranky Sam, Australia's only Chinese bushranger, who hanged at Bathurst in 1865. The journey through time acknowledges artists who have visited or lived in the region from the 1940's and 1960's, including such lesser known figures as Jean Bellette, who remains the only woman to have won the Sulman Prize more than once. Reference is made to the imagery of Whiteley, Johnson and other artists, the lack of consequences for Donald Friend's paedophilia, his activities in Hill End and beyond and why special allowances have been made for unacceptable, criminal behaviour from specific male artists. There are images based on photographs of nooses and gravestones that were installed in Hill End after it was gazetted as an historic site. Public protests were aimed at National Parks & Wildlife Service, whose staff recall having their tyres slashed whenever they came to town. By the 1980's many residents had lost family properties and the protesters referred to NPWS as totalitarians who ignored their rights.

Genre: Art / General (fancy, right?)