Identity is fixed and self is understood in the context of words such as Abo, Boong, Coon and Darkie . While his work was increasingly exhibited within a national and international context, the combination of his position (or as Bennett would argue label) as an (urban) Aboriginal artist, and the subject matter of his work, seemed to ensure inclusion within certain curatorial and critical frameworks, and largely determine interpretation and reception. Such images have defined the nations settlement history for many generations of Australians. Well-known Australian and international artists whose works are referenced in different ways in Bennetts work include Hans Heysen, Margaret Preston, Imants Tillers, Vincent van Gogh, Jackson Pollock, Colin McCahon and Jean-Michel Basquiat. Possession Island (1991), for example, presents shadowy renditions of Captain Cook and his party against a watery blue ground, overlayed with . The first panel of Bennetts triptych, Requiem, depicts Trugannini (c. 1812 1876), a Palawa woman from Tasmania. Gordon Bennett, an Australian Aboriginal artist, demonstrates this theory through his work. Gordon Bennett arrived on Christmas Island in 1979 to take a post as leader of the Union of Christmas Island Workers. Gordon Bennett 1, Bennetts Aboriginal heritage came through his mother. How do these systems/conventions reflect values and ideas important to that culture? * *Collection: Museum of Sydney on the site of the first Government House, Historic Houses Trust of New South Wales. Gordon Bennett, Possession Island, 1991, oil and synthetic polymer paint on canvas, Museum of Sydney, Sydney Living Museums; Daniel Boyd, We Call Them . Possession Island No 2 1991 is a painting that shows the British explorer Captain James Cook and other compatriots hoisting the Union flag to claim the eastern coast of Australia for the British Crown in 1770. However Bennetts illusionistic representation of the rugged terrain and billowing clouds reflect a style of painting traditionally associated with European Romantic art. Gordon Bennett, Possession Island (1991)*. Bennett purposefully constructed these layers to blur fixed ideas and raise questions about the way identity is constructed. He serves as a counterpoint to Gordon Bennetts Other, and yet we are the one and the same. He was in a sense all things to all people. It was a way forward for me. It is open to self revelation, self redemption and a myriad of rich images of self that can be built upon. These contrasting and complex meanings and ideas are not accidental. Bennetts portrait of himself as a four- year old boy dressed as a cowboy as the I is juxtaposed with images of Aborigines as the AM. Would you include work by Gordon Bennett in a text book on Australian history. EUR 99,99. dresden-de (52.329) 100%. These images include scenes featuring tall ships, the landing of Captain Cook at Botany Bay, and several scenes that reveal the violence and tension that often characterised the relationship between colonisers and the colonised. From the beginning of his career, John Citizen had had a complex relationship with Gordon Bennett. His status as an artist has been elevated to hero with his contribution to Action Painting. They powerfully describe pain and violence. Image: Gordon Bennett, Australia 1955-2014, Possession Island, 1991. (Supplied: CGM Communications) In 1989, Bennett, Mr Lai and five other executives started Phosphate Resources Limited and got the locals to invest, raising about $3.4 million. On each corner of the grid are the letters A B C D . Gordon Bennett POSSESSION ISLAND 1991 Titled, dated (1992) and signed by the artist on each panel and bears various exhibition related inscriptions and labels on the stretchers, and inscribed with date of completion 29.12.91 on the reverse of the right panel Synthetic polymer paint on canvas (diptych) 162 by 130 cm each panel, 162 by 260 cm overall Image credit: Gordon Bennett - Possession Island (1991). Discuss with reference to examples in at least two works by Bennett. Discuss with reference to a range of artworks by Bennett. Bennett's work is held in over 100 public and private collections, including many major state institutions such as the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney; Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney; National Gallery of Australia, Canberra and National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne. Bennett was in possession of all four, all of which will become evident upon a glance at a summary of his life. Dates/events to consider and research include the 1967 Australian Referendum, the 1992 Mabo and 1996 Wik Native Title court cases, Paul Keatings 1992 Redfern address. Narratives of exploration, colonisation and settlement failed to recognise the sovereign rights (or sovereignty) of Australias Indigenous people. Who was Gordon Bennett? In many images of the crucifixion, including the painting by Veneziano illustrated, Mary Magdalene is kneeling at the foot of the cross washing and anointing Christs feet in an act of devotion . When Gordon Bennett was labelled an Aboriginal Artist he was othered as an Aborigine and all the preconceptions that entails. Bennett as a cultural outsider of both his Aboriginal and AngloCeltic heritage does not assume a simplistic interpretation of identity. Here he is concealed under blocks of black, red and yellow, the colours of the Aboriginal flag. Like words, visual images, forms and elements are powerful signifiers of meaning. 35, 36. What values or ideas characterise the postKeating era in Australia? The impact of colonisation on Aboriginal people and culture from this point was devastating. The process of translation from one version to the next mimics how history is endlessly translated and transformed by the vagaries oftime and by individual perspectives. The vanishing point may also be understood as the point from which these lines extend outward past the picture plane to include the viewer in the pictorial space, positioned as observer of a self contained harmonious whole. Pinterest. The Estate of Gordon Bennett. This is the second of two works entitled Possession Island that Bennett painted following Australias bicentennial celebrations in 1988. In Notes to Basquiat (Jackson Pollock and his other) 2001, Bennett confronts these issues within a global context. That was to be the extent of my formal education on Aborigines and Aboriginal culture until Art College. Bennett used Blue Poles to recall this period of change. Fri. 10-9, Sat. As far as pinning down who John Citizen actually was, Im not interested in doing that. James Gordon Bennett Many a good newspaper story has been ruined by over verification. Fundamentally, he deconstructed history to question the truth of the past. Opens in a new window or tab. Bennett only used two colours, symbolically, red and black. 'Bloodlines' Get this The Morning News page for free from Friday, July 7, 1972 Q90 wSu Fairfax Shopping Center Doily 10-6. Gordon Bennett (1955-2014) created the triptych Bloodlines 1993 early in his career. Ontological questions as to what essentially is architecture, painting, sculpture, drawing, and print elicited numerous answers in the early modern period, due in part to experimentation and development in technical, formal, and discursive practices during the Middle Ages. Compare and contrast this artists use of appropriation with that of Gordon Bennett. Create an illustrated and annotated timeline of the history of Australia since settlement. In her lifetime, Trugannini witnessed the systematic and often violent destruction of her culture and people. The Notes to Basquiat series takes appropriation to yet another level within Bennetts art practice. Gordon Bennett an Australian Aboriginal artist demonstrates this theory through his work. May 20, 2022 - Explore Benny O's board "Artists" on Pinterest. These include the tall ship and the appropriated logos featuring kitsch and racist references to Indigenous people, and the ominous juxtaposition of bags of flour and bottles of poison. What evidence can you see in this self-portrait of Bennett linking issues of personal identity with broader issues related to history and culture? I needed to change direction at least for a while. This contemporary questioning and revision of the traditional, narrow euro-centric view of history reflects a postcolonial perspective. Bennett layered these two distinctly different artists with his own work work previously appropriated from yet another context. Possession Island (Abstraction), Gordon Bennett, 1991, Oil paint and acrylic paint on canvas. It demonstrates Bennetts understanding of the power of this image. Samuel Calverts engraving, Captain Cook taking possession of the Australian continent on behalf of the British Crown AD 1770, became the starting point for Bennetts exploration. He has written of his approach to his work: Bennetts practice include painting, printmaking, drawing, video, performance, installation and sculpture, and challenges racial stereotypes and critically reflects on Australias history (official and unacknowledged) by addressing issues relating to the role of language and systems of thought in forging identity. Gordon Bennett 2. I am purposely not defining him only as Aboriginal because he himself does not want to be defined only as such. In European tradition these are seen as a means of mapping and defining space. Gordon Bennett, Possession Island (1991)*. Early life [ edit] Discuss with reference to a selection of at least three works, clearly identifying stylistic shifts, and evidence of conceptual unity. He was born in New York, May 10th 1841 and died 4 days after his 77th Birthday in Beaulieu near Nizza/France. Bennett intentionally fuses this iconic style of Western painting with the famous Aboriginal white dot painting of the Western Desert, reproducing the mix in Possession Island. He is not disturbed by slashes of paint, but painted carefully and outlined by the precise grid behind him. European history has stipulated that being Australian has required anyone that does not fit into such a Eurocentric category is different, other and therefore unworthy. His work is layered and complex and often incorporates images, styles or references drawn from sources such as social history text books, western art history and Indigenous art. The triptych form of painting is most commonly associated with the altarpiece paintings made for Christian churches. The title of the work itself is unsettling. Possession Island No 2 is representative of Bennetts wider practice, which explores issues of post-colonisation and Aboriginal identity. What legal, moral and ethical rights does an artist have to control the way their work is seen and viewed in exhibitions, books or online. Nearby Recently Sold Homes. Bennett also includes copies and samples of his own work, such as Possession Island and Big Romantic painting (The Apotheosis of Captain Cook) 1993, with other found images. The inclusion of Pollock helps build these cross- connections. Celebrations continued throughout the year and gave renewed focus to traditional images and stories of the nations settlement history. Gleichzeitig war es das erste Jahr ohne Stadt-zu-Stadt-Rennen, die nach dem Todesrennen" Paris-Madrid . McCahon uses I AM to question notions of faith. As one of the dispossessed within this biased history, he claims that his only tool to combat this bias was the art of mimicry. Self portrait (Ancestor figures), 1992 deals with broader issues of cultural identity as well as personal identity. At the same time his work demonstrates great conceptual unity and interconnectedness. Bennett was interested in the way language and images construct identity and history, and the way this language controls and creates meaning. Research the representation of three dimensional space in selected artforms of several different cultures (ie. As an Australian of both Aboriginal and Anglo Celtic descent, Bennett felt he had no access to his indigenous heritage. Bellas Gallery. Our experiences in this society manifest themselves in neuroses, demoralization, anger, and in art. Why? She attempted to create works that reflected a sense of national identity by incorporating Aboriginal motifs and colours in her work. Possession Island is a small island off the coast of northern Queensland, near the tip of Cape York, the most northerly point of mainland Australia. ), National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne 2007, p. 97, Gordon Bennett, The manifest toe, pp. Gordon Bennett, The Manifest Toe, in Ian McLean & Gordon Bennett, The Art of Gordon Bennett, Craftsman House/ G + G Arts International, Sydney, 1996, pp.962.Kelly Gellatly et.al., Gordon Bennett: A Survey, exhibition catalogue, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne 2007. At the heart of the artwork of Gordon Bennett is a journey to find that self amidst the cultural and historical inequities created by European settlement in Australia. Bennett was acutely aware that his own success paralleled the growing contemporary interest in Indigenous art and culture. Using this list, find a range of artworks that you could appropriate to help communicate your personal identity visually. Against the background of the illusionistic representation of the landscape they capture our attention, alerting us to the fact that there are other ways of representing and understanding the landscape not just the European perspectives that have dominated our cultural history. Gordon Bennett, Possession Island, 1991, oil and synthetic polymer paint on canvas in two parts. This approach to his work resists any classification or confinement according to style. Sell with Artsy Artist Series Portraits of Artists and Sculptors 113 available In just three generations, that heritage has been lost to me. ww2dbase Henry Gordon Bennett was born in Balwyn, a suburb of Melbourne, near the close of the nineteenth century. Gordon Bennett was born on 9 October, 1955 in Monto, Australia. Nov 26, 2012 - The paintings of Gordon Bennett are loaded with graphic detail. Oil and synthetic polymer paint on canvas Two parts: 162 x 260cm (overall . However these ideas and values simultaneously oppressed Indigenous people and their cultural and knowledge systems. Often the basic alphabet letters ABC also appear with Bennetts perspective diagrams, highlighting the learned and culturally specific nature of the alphabet and linear perspective. Curated by Zara StanhopeThe intelligence and passion of Gordon Bennett's politically committed post-appropriation art struck a chord with the postcolonial ambitions of the 1990s. Queensland-born Gordon Bennett was an artist who loved collapsing 'high' and 'low' art boundaries. Gordon Bennett is an Australian artist of Aboriginal descent. He used familiar and recognisable images that are part of an Australian consciousness to explore and question the meaning of these images. At the same time I have resisted being positioned as a spokesperson for my people since I do not have nor do I seek, such a mandate by declining to speak about my work. Physically, the kitsch Aboriginal motifs copied from Preston are trapped. This led him to adopt an artistic alter ego, John Citizen. While these may indicate the way maps are constructed to find different locations, they also represent the first letter of racial slurs. L120238 Gordon Bennett. Gordon Bennett, born on 16 April 1887 at Balwyn, Melbourne, was Australia's most controversial Second World War commander. Although there are many forms of Aboriginal art, dot painting is widely seen as synonymous with Aboriginal art since the late 1970s, when the dot painting of the Western Desert attracted unprecedented national and international interest in Aboriginal art. The linear diagram that frames the kneeling figure of Bennetts mother in the central panel of Triptych: Requiem, Of grandeur, Empire, and the diagrams in the lower sections of the two side panels, are typical of illustrations that explain the principles of linear perspective. Include reference to specific examples in your discussion. The viewer does not confront the artist, but self. . In September 2017, Bennett's 1991 Possession Island was unveiled at London's Tate Modern. Collection: Museum of Sydney, Sydney Living Museums The Estate of Gordon Bennett What aspects of Bennetts works might viewers focus on as emotional? Australian politics is fraught yet the Australian public is disengaged. a moment of possession; the place where he came ashore and allegedly claimed . Australian artist Gordon Bennett passed away on June 3, 2014, from natural causes at the age of 58. The pale, marble- like sculpted heads on the bed remind us of the Classical art and learning that has been privileged in Western culture above other forms of art and learning, including those associated with Indigenous cultures. scale, format), Ian McLean Gordon Bennetts existentialism in Ian McLean & Gordon Bennett, The art of Gordon Bennett, Craftsman House, Roseville East, 1996, p. 69, Ian McLean Gordon Bennetts existentialism, p. 71. This is a Tate Images licensable image titled 'Possession Island (Abstraction)' by Tate Images. Image credit: Gordon Bennett - Possession Island (1991). Acutely aware of the frame, I graduated as a straight honours student of fine art to find myself positioned and contained by the language of primitivism as an Urban Aboriginal Artist. In images such as these, Aboriginal people are often absent or relegated to the background. Learn How rich is He in this year and how He spends money? We would like to hear from you. This was common practice among young Aboriginal girls and women. Often describing his own practice of borrowing images as quoting, Bennett re-contextualised existing images to challenge the viewer to question and see alternative perspectives. His bold and humane art challenged racial stereotypes and provoked critical reflection on Australia's official history and national identity. Self portrait (But I always wanted to be one of the good guys), 1990 questions how stereotypes create a sense of identity. For Mondrian the grid became the essence of all forms. all the education and socialization upon which my identity and self worth as a person, indeed my sense of Australianness, and that of my peers, had as its foundation the narratives of colonialism. Perhaps in this sense Citizen represents an Australian everyman who recognises the wrongs of history and racist representations, but who has no real interest in going any further in asking hard questions about why they happened and what impact they caused. In Interior (Tribal rug), 2007 the sleek modern design of the furniture is complemented by a Margaret Preston inspired tribal rug and an abstract painting by Gordon Bennett. Bennett indicates the need to be reconciled within the context of culture and history to develop a full sense of identity. The circular forms in the sky are inspired by the brilliant bursts of light in van Goghs Starry night. But this approach is central to the way many people describe and analyse his work. The repression of Aboriginal heritage that Bennett experienced was reinforced by an education system and society dominated by a history built on the belief in Australia as terra nullius. Research the significant dates/events referenced in Bennetts artworks, including Myth of the Western Man (White mans burden) 1992 for some ideas. For more information, visit: www.qagoma.qld.gov.au for details. These act as disturbances. $927,000 Last Sold Price. marking the first car ever to touch the island's soil. Bennett used 9/11 and its global impact three months after the event as the stage for his discourse on cultural identity. . Dots have been an important element in many of Bennetts paintings as a powerful signifier of Aboriginal art, for example Triptych: Requiem, Of grandeur, Empire. A fleet of tall ships sailed around Australia as part of the commemoration of settlement. At auction, a number of Picassos paintings have sold for more than $100 million. Gordon Bennett: Selected Writings $45.00 Quantity Edited by Angela Goddard and Tim Riley Walsh A co-publication from Power Publications and Griffith University Art Museum Paperback with dust jacket RRP $45.00 AUD ISBN 978--909952-01-3 66 images, including colour plates 216 pp 297 x 210 mm 890 gms That is not my intention, I have my own experiences of being crowned in Australia, as an Urban Aboriginal artist underscored as that title is by racism and primitivism and I do not wear it well. This work reflects our contemporary obsession with creating the perfect home filled with the latest must have designer style and material items. "I want a future that lives up to my past": the words from David McDiarmid's iconic poster reverberate now, as we ponder the past year and think ah. Gordon Bennett, Possession Island, 1991, oil and synthetic polymer paint on canvas; two parts, 162 x 260cm (overall). Blood is a potent symbol and has historically been a measure of Aboriginality. What is your personal interpretation of the meaning and ideas in The coming of the light or Untitled ? The Politics of Art. Today a monument exists on the site commemorating his arrival. These signs can also be read as evidence that disputes the claim that Australia was discovered terra nullius or nobodys land. Pollock becomes a catalyst for transformation. In 1989, a year after graduating from art college, his work was included in the high profile Australian Perspect a exhibition of contemporary art at the Art Gallery of New South Wales. I had never thought to question those narratives and I certainly had never been taught at school to question them only to believe them. Further reading Gordon Bennett (9 October 1955 - 3 June 2014) [1] was an Australian artist of Aboriginal and Anglo-Celtic descent. Gordon Bennett explores these ideas in Self portrait: Interior/ Exterior , 1992. Our understanding of the meanings associated with visual signs is linked to cultural codes, conventions and experience. John Citizen lets me take my Australian citizenship and cultural upbringing back from the netherworld of the imagined Other. Read through the profiles and market analysis for the top 200 Indigenous artists Looking at the image from different viewpoints helps us to discover different perspectives. . Possession Island (Appendix 1) 1991 and Notes to Basquiat (Jackson Pollock and his Other) (Appendix 2) 2001 will be discussed in relation to Henri's statement. Gordon Bennett, The manifest toe, pp. 148339 AK Gordon-Bennett-Rennen 1904 Cup Motorsport Usingen Weilburg Limburg. This image also translates to mean: In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. cat. I did want to explore Aboriginality, however, and it is a subject of my work as much as colonialism and the narratives and language that frame it, and the language that has consistently framed me. Bennetts art is not always easy to look at. This pastiche of style and image is like a D J (Disc Jockey) sampling and remixing different styles of music to create new expressions. However the hand in the opposite panel controls and threatens the Aboriginal figure represented as a jack- in- the- box. Aim to use a variety of strategies in your work to engage the viewer in the issues and questions you are interested in exploring in relation to these binary opposites. Bennett achieved critical success early in his career. While the conceptual framework underpinning Bennetts art remained remarkably consistent, his art practice was characterised by some dramatic stylistic shifts over twenty years. Gordon Bennett, Possession Island (Abstraction), 1991. Some supporters applauded his escape but his claim that he left to pass on his knowledge about how to fight the Japanese - given his lack of success . Gordon Bennett Possession Island (Abstraction) 1991 Oil paint and acrylic paint on canvas 1 843 x 1845 mm Tate and the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia, purchased jointly with funds provided by the Qantas Foundation 2016 Estate of Gordon Bennett CZ: A lot of the featured artists have also created work since 1992. He and his partner bought a house and settled in the suburbs of Brisbane like other young couples. SOLD FEB 10, 2023. Once again the letters A B C D feature as a potent symbol and complete the grid. Gordon Bennett 1. However Bennetts use of the black square in this and other works also reflect his ongoing interest in the work of the influential Russian abstract artist Kazimir Malevich (1878-1935). Lichtenstein 19231987). While some people may argue this has been a quick road to success, and that my work is authorised by my Aboriginality, I maintain that I dont have to be an Aborigine to do what I do, and that quick success is not an inherent attribute of an Aboriginal heritage, as history has shown, nor is it that unusual for college graduates who have something relevant to say. Conversation Bill Wright talks to Gordon Bennett, in Kelly Gellatly with contributions by Bill Wright, Justin Clemens and Jane Devery, Ian McLean, Who is John Citizen? Greenaway Art Gallery, 2006, Kelly Gellatly Citizen in the making, in Kelly Gellatly, p. 24. while Bennett may have attempted, in recent years, to disconnect from the politics of his earlier practice, there is also a sense within these paintings, of the impossibility of such a task. They absorb the flow of blood and recall the symbols often used in Aboriginal dot painting of the Western Desert to represent significant sites. They became a potent symbol of the celebrations. In a conceptual sense I was liberated from the binary prison of self and other; the wall had disintegrated but where was I? How do the key themes/ideas and strategies in the book/film compare to those used by Gordon Bennett in early work such as. What evidence can you find of Bennett conceptually examining the ideas behind the emotion, and extrapolating from there? While personal experience has had a significant influence on Gordon Bennetts art practice, the autobiographical aspects of his work are framed by bigger ideas and questions that have relevance and significance beyond Bennetts own experience. 2,038 Sq. (2nd Edition), What is Appropriation? The juxtaposition and sequencing of words and images in Untitled is unsettling. However, Bennetts ongoing investigation into questions of identity, perception and knowledge, has involved a range of subjects drawn from both history and contemporary culture, and both national and international contexts. The coming of the light refers ironically to a term used by Torres Strait Islanders to describe the arrival of the missionaries who brought Christianity to the Islands in 1871. Compare and contrast Possession Island with one or more of the following artworks: What does this comparison reveal about the relationship between visual images, culture and history? Basquiats signature crown hovers beneath a tag-like image of fire. Some of Prestons appropriations however, demeaned and trivialised the way Aborigines were depicted and understood. 27 oct. 2018 - Dcouvrez le tableau "GORDON BENNETT" de Bibishams sur Pinterest. Research references to existing images in Gordon Bennetts The nine richochets (Fall down black fella, jump up white fella) 1990. By overlaying perspective diagrams on images constructed according to the conventions of perspective, such as the landscape in Requiem, Bennett reminds us of the learned and culturally specific systems that influence knowledge and perception. Reflecting the colours of the Aboriginal flag, splashes and drips of red, yellow and black paint across the surface of the painting quote the distinctive style of Jackson Pollock (19121956), which Bennett began to sample in 1990. After years of critiquing art-historical standards, Bennett has himself become the standard bearer. Bennetts art engages with historical and contemporary questions of cultural and personal identity, with a specific focus on Australias colonial past and its postcolonial present. Bennett used it to question notions of self. Its like images become part of the Australian unconscious. What does this comment suggest to you about the purpose of Bennetts questioning of history? Bennett presents each image with a single word, written in capitals, that boldly asserts a new meaning for them. Roundels relating to symbols that denote significant sites in Aboriginal Western Desert dot painting also appear. While 2007 was a brilliant year for Bennett's secondary market results, with eight works sold of which . Is this response informed by Bennetts work? It has been designed for teachers and students to instigate discussion and investigation, and includes learning activities relevant to history and visual arts that can be adapted to different levels. Bennett worked in a range of art forms and with a variety of media and techniques. The Whitlam Government abolished the last remnants of the White Australia policy, established diplomatic relations with China and advocated Aboriginal land rights, to name just a few of these changes. But the oppressive and restrictive laws that governed the lives of Aboriginal people in Australia until the late 1960s continued to impose on her life. Using a painting technique, create a finished artwork based on one or some of these experiments. In 2003, Bennett embarked on a series of non-representational abstract paintings, marking a dramatic shift in his art practice, formally and conceptually.