Iconic Australian Images. Sydney Nolan and Russell Drysdale

Australia is one of the worst countries for having pointless and prefabricated ideas of "Aussiness" that basically has no real relation to our true ‘culture’ or the way in which we really see ourselves. We, however, reach for these stereotypes when trying to find some expression of our Australian identity. However, sometimes these representations and ideas of national identity have not depicted the way the rest of the nation sees it. Deep inside the ‘reality’ of texts today background shows another side that can be often overlooked. These can be found the film, Red Dog. And the movie, The Castle. in the book, Harp in the South.

Australia is filled with many different aspects in which makes it the country it is today. I believe it is important to study texts that explore aspects of Australia by studying texts such as ‘The Club’, by David Williamson, a play written in 1977 about an Australian football club and movies such as “The Castle”, directed by Rob Stitch in 1997, about the daily life of an Australian family when their happiness is threatened when developers attempt to buy their house to expand the neighboring airport. Both these texts show us what Australian life was like in the past. By us looking at themes such as language, tradition and the mateship shown we are able to explore different aspects of Australia that make it what it is today.

While some texts choose to represent the Australian landscape as being harsh and untamed, others appear to present them in a more positive fashion. However, when we get to the heart of each text, it's context and purpose we find a common theme of connection with the land within them. In this analysis I will be using Wild Cat Falling by Mudrooroo, My Country by Dorothea Mackellar and The Drovers Wife by Henry Lawson. Wild Cat falling represents the main character as having a disconnection with the Australian landscape, which leads to him having an identity crisis, not knowing where he belongs. My Country represents the authors connection with the bush landscape,

I did this by combining Mackellar’s head with Gilbert’s head to show that they are talking about the same thing, Australia, even if their perspectives are completely different. The line in the middle of the fused face represents a fence, and shows that Kevin Gilbert’s opinion has been caged in and hidden from society, unlike Mackellar’s opinion which has been adopted into our nation’s identity. I also implemented quotes above their heads, representing what each of them thought about Australia. As you can see, Mackellar’s side has a green background, which has connotations to life, growth and harmony. This background colour in conjunction with the native flower I drew helps represent Australia’s identity of natural beauty. In addition to that I drew a gold ingot to show that Australia landscape can be compared jewellery has connotation of wealth and being priceless. Moreover, I drew Australia connected to a heart symbolising Mackellar’s love for Australia. On the other hand I decided to go with a red background on Gilbert’s side, symbolising his hatred and anger at what the European settlers have done to Australia. I also drew images of cut down trees in conjunction with factories, to show the environmental destruction caused by European settlers in Australia as mentioned in

Wright’s 1945 poem, The Hawthorn Hedge, is a representation of the predatory power of the Australian landscape over those who refuse to unite with it. It details an unspecific persona’s attempts to establish security by planting a hawthorn hedge, separating her from a harsh, imagined landscape. The specificity of “the hawthorn hedge” reveals that this is introduced British species. As the hawthorn hedge is traditionally used as a natural fence, this clarifies that the persona is attempting to block out the landscape around her. Secondly, the fact that the hawthorn hedge is a British species suggests that the persona is also attempting to establish a reminder of her homeland, Britain. A tenet of Wright’s poetry is the strength of the true Australia and the concept of Australia’s break-away from Britain, exemplified in

Bennett art is more of society commentary than telling his story, it about his connect to his heritage and people. Australia culture falls to value and understand the igneous culture. Bennett Art confronts the loss and bigotry he and all igneous people have suffered. “… 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.”(Bennett) He explore the internal confected about belonging feel nether igneous nor a westerner but somewhere in-between lead him to struggle with his sense of

The identity of Australia as a place comes from both its physical features and the atmosphere, which is often created by its physical appearance. Three artists who have depicted the Australian landscape in different styles are Arthur Streeton, John Olsen and Sally Morgan. Streeton’s works are in a realistic but lively style typical of the Heidelberg school. He was intent on recreating the light and warmth of the land. Olsen and Morgan’s works, on the other hand, offer more abstract interpretations of the land. During the 1960s and 1970s, Olsen captured the essence and the energy of the landscape with his bold and bright brushwork whilst Morgan’s work from the 1980s portrays Australia from an indigenous perspective, which she achieves through her use of Aboriginal symbolism and cultural imagery.

Australian landscapes have long been used to place fear and anxiety in the Anglo-Australian’s psyche. This anxiety and the requirement for Indigenous peoples to negotiate white ideals is reflected in current Australian literature and cinematic identities. This essay will discuss the critical arguments of what makes the chosen texts Australian literature. This discussion will be restricted to the critiques of the film Lantana directed by Ray Lawrence and the novel Biten’ Back written by Vivienne Cleven. The will firstly look at the use of landscape as a crime scene and how this links to the anxieties caused by the doctrine of terra nullius and the perceived threats from an introduced species. It will then look at the Australian fear of a different ‘other’ followed then by a discussion around masculinity and the need for Indigenous people to negotiate white ideals. The essay will argue that Australian literature and film reflect a nation that still has anxieties about the true sovereignty of the land and assert that Indigenous people have a requirement to fit in with white ideals.

‘We’re all Australians now’ draws the reader to see the war from a positive Australia home front perspective. Texts from

The Sun Baker created in 1973 By Max Dupain is a photograph that is considered the most widely recognized photo through out all of Australian pictures that have been taken. In this photo we can see a man lying on the beach. Sunbaker’ is Max Dupain’s most famous artwork but it is not just an artwork, it is an Australian icon because of the way it represents what Australia is - In a way this photo is depicting the Australian way of life through being portrayed as a relaxed and care free community, Max him self stated that this image is depicting the “Australian way of life”.

Students will create a juxtaposed artwork representing the past of Aboriginal culture and the future according to Paul Keating’s speech. The material used will be ones from the nature such as sticks and leaves to create a depiction of Aboriginal history. The artwork will tell two stories one being the discrimination against Aboriginals and the other being a better future for them. Using earthy colours, natural materials and techniques used by Aboriginals student will create a beautiful artwork explain the Indigenous Australians past and future. • Drama activity-

In the opinion of historian and author of ‘The Australian Legend’ -Russel Ward, his representation of the typical Australian is a practical, rough man who gives things a go. Other perceived ideas stated in his text are; masculinity and mateship, egalitarianism, larrikinism, anti-intellectualism and stoicism. Published in 1958, these ideologies symbolize the typical man in the days in was written, whereas nowadays it can be perceived differently with modern, ‘multicultural’ Australians. Though most of the ideas are still accurate to todays people, it was only focused on the men, and not the women or general society including the indigenous. I have chosen to analyse two classic Australian bush poems by two well known competitors. The first one

An Australian Icon is defined as “an image or symbolic representation, which often holds great significance and importance to the Australian culture.” Every country has icons that represent their culture and values; Nelson Mandela is an example of a South African icon but also an icon of the world, who represented statesmanship, courage, freedom and equality against apartheid. Australia also has many significant icons such as the Sydney Opera House, Uluru, vegemite, Ned Kelly, and the Koala to name a few. These have all played significant parts in Australia’s background, culture and values.

Born in Great Britain (1938), John Wolseley came to Australia in 1976 and has worked on recording the history of north Australia in large paintings. His new home provided him with a distinctive environment. Wolseley finds new ways to relate to the land, which turns into interesting artistic practices. In Wolseley’s artwork Murray-Sunset he put sheets of paper in burnt desert scrub for weeks and each sheet recorded carbon traces in the form of charcoal, stipple, and marks made by the burnt fingers of trees and shrubs. For this artwork, he used the Keeling Curve to represent CO2 in his sheets of paper and to show the earth's climate changing. Dystopia last wetland artwork. Watercolour, feathers, ink, charcoal and graphite on paper were all the

Between the great Wars, Australian art was under the strong impact of the European trends. The painters adopted the techniques of the leading European artists. The emergence appearance of the Modernism and Cubism was due to the hard work of Australian female artists such as Grace Cossington Smith and Grace Crowley. These women found an inspiration in different art streams but both could create a respective career. Their creations emphasized on structure, colour and design. At the beginning, the public did not perceive the new art directions as they were unfamiliar with them. The men’s art world strongly criticized the women’s attempts to bring the modern art movements in Australia. In spite of it, the contribution of Grace Crowley was one of