Lin ONUS (1948-1996) Language: Wiradjuri / Yorta Yorta Lin Onus played a pivotal role in the recognition of Aboriginal art as an expression of a contemporary and dynamic living culture. Prior to his premature death at just 47 years of age he was a prominent, strident, yet non-confrontational agent in renegotiating the history of colonial and Aboriginal Australia. His father, Bill Onus, was the founder of the Aboriginal Advancement League in Victoria and a prominent maker of artefacts in Melbourne. As a young Koori growing up, Lin lived in a cultural environment that included exposure to visiting Aboriginal artists, including Albert Namatjira. He began his artistic life assisting his father in decorating artifacts, went on to develop skills working with metal and painting with air brush as a panel beater; and by 1974 he was painting watercolors and photo-realist landscapes. In the 1970's he completed a set of paintings on the first Aboriginal guerrilla fighter Mosquito, which holds pride of place on the walls of the Advancement League in Melbourne, to this day. Lin Onus was a largely self-taught artist. Particularly important in his development was his visits to Garmedi (Arnhem Land) starting in 1986. Jack Wunuwun, the Yolngu artist, introduced him into the Murrungun-Djinang clan and gave him permission to use some of traditional images in his paintings. His cultural education on the Aboriginal side was also provided by visits to Cummeragunja with his father, and stories told by his uncle Aaron Briggs, known as 'the old man of the forest' who gave him his Koori name - Burrinja, meaning 'star'. They would sit on the banks of the Murray River within view of the Barmah Forest, Lin's spiritual home, the subject of many of his later paintings and his final resting place. Lin's father had been of the Yorta Yorta people from the Barmah Forest country, and Lin also used images from this area in his paintings. The images in his works include haunting photorealist portrayals of the Barmah red gum forests of his father's ancestral country, and the use of rarrk cross-hatching-based based painting style that he learned (and was given permission to use when in Arnhemland). His painting Barmah Forest won Canberra's national Aboriginal Heritage Award in 1994. (http://www.cooeeart.com.au/aboriginal_artist/lin_onus/A, accessed 18 May 2015) This item is part of the Federation University Art Collection. The Art Collection features over 1000 works and was listed as a 'Ballarat Treasure' in 2007.Framed limited edition silkscreen.Signed 'Onus' lower right (posthumously by Tiriki Onus) Edition 68/80art, artwork, lin onus, onus, printmaking, screenprint, aboriginal, dreaming, frogs, available

Josh MUIR (14 August 1991- 05 February 2022 ) Yorta Yorta/Gunditjmara/Barkinjl Muir's art draws on hip-hop and street art culture and often depicts the history of indigenous people and European settlers. He spent a lot of time in his teens researching and enjoying public art, especially graffiti. Inspired by the commitment of graffers he was inspired by the concepts they illustrate. He started expressing his own ideas with pen and pad and once the basic concept down and it was tangible and could be converted that to canvas or walls. Muir experimented with spray and stencil work a lot in his teens and later branched out into acrylic paints, paint pens, and digital forms of Art. iN 2014 Josh Muir was THE Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience'S (AIMe) Program Manager Assistant at Federation University Australia in Ballarat.Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience Z In 2016 Josh Muir's work 'Still Here', projected onto the front wall of the National Gallery of Victoria was critically acclaimed. At that time he stated: "‘I am a proud Yorta Yorta/ Gunditjmara man, born and living in Ballarat, Victoria. I hold my culture strong to my heart – it gives me a voice and a great sense of my identity. When I look around, I see empires built on aboriginal land. I cannot physically change or shift this, though I can make the most of my culture in a contemporary setting and use my art projects to address current issues of reconciliation." In 2016 Josh Muir was awarded the second recipient of HMS Trust’s Hutchinson Indigenous Fellowship at University of Melbourne, based at the Victorian College of the Arts (VCA). The Fellowship was created to enable Indigenous artists to undertake significant projects of their choice.Signed lower right "jmuir"josh muir, artwork, artist, aboriginal, hutchinson indigenous fellowship

My visual stories seek to inform about the natural and cultural histories that attribute to the experience of country (place), in order hat the audience gains respect, understanding and a sense of belonging to the place. My practice involves various mediums in two and three dimensional form, which include permanent and ephemeral installation, paving, stonework, woodwork, metal work, lighting design, illustration, mural painting and mosaic work. I am competent in using all these mediums, but do have a preference to stone and wood. Having been involved in public and community art as a designer and sculpture/maker in both individual and collaborations for the past fifteen years, I have been fortunate to work with and partake in various collaborations and project teams; working with council organizations, landscape designers, art practitioners, artisans and arts workers. (https://www.glennromanis.com/biography, accessed 08 June 2022)Glenn ROMANIS Wurundjeri/woi wurrung and Boonwerrung This item is part of the Federation University Art Collection. The Art Collection features over 2000 works and was listed as a 'Ballarat Treasure' in 2007.A fire pit with sculpted redgum seats in the shape of a gum leaf. It was created for the Arts Victoria 'Artlands' Conference held in Horsham in 2004. Artlands is a national event designed to reflect and respond to emerging trends and shine a spotlight on arts in regional Australia. It is designed to showcase new thinking, present contemporary work, and generate exchange and conversations. The programming champions best practice and strengthens a national network of artists and practitioners working in regional, rural and remote Australia. Presented and delivered by Regional Arts Australia, Artlands is positioned as a multi-art, cross-industry and inter-generational. It presents a critical survey of the contemporary regional cultural landscape; and provides much-needed opportunities for artists to gather, present work and enter into meaningful exchange.art, artwork, aboriginal, glenn romanis, sculpture, campsite, camp fire

374 pages : illustrations, portraits ; 30 cm. Includes bibliographical references and indexnon-fictionA narrative of the pioneering women of Warrnambool and surrounding districts during the 1840’s-1910. Includes photographs, illustrations, paintings, bibliography, index.history &​ archaeology., society &​ social sciences., women -- victoria -- warrnambool -- biography., warrnambool (vic.) -- biography., warrnambool (vic.) -- history., australian, aboriginal australian, women pioneers, women aboriginal australian -- victoria, book

Lin ONUS (1948-1996) Lin Onus was integral to the recognition of Aboriginal art in the contemporary Australian art landscape. His work expresses the dynamism of living culture; Onus was a prominent figure in renegotiating the history of colonial and Aboriginal Australian. An early influence of this dedication was his father, who was the founder of the Aboriginal Advancement League in Victoria and a maker of artefacts. As a young boy Onus was subsequently exposed to visiting Aboriginal artists and assisted his father in decorating artefacts. His painting Barmah Forest won the Aboriginal Heritage Award in 1994; Onus also received a Member of the Order of Australia “for service to the arts as a painter and sculptor and the other promotion of Aboriginal artists and their work.” (https://www.portjacksonpress.com.au/artists/lin-onus)Unframed colour screenprint with a limited edition of 60.lin onus, frogs, aboriginal, screenprint, printmaking, gippsland campus, print council australia

Yhonnie SCARCE (1973- ) Born Woomera, South Australia Language group: Kokatha, Southern desert region and Nukunu, Spencer region Yhonnie Scarce works predominantly in glass. She majored in glass withing a Bachelor of Visual Arts (Honours) course at the South Australian School of Art, Adelaide, and holds a Master of Fine Arts from Monash University. One of the first contemporary Australian artists to explore the political and aesthetic power of glass, Scarce describes her work as ‘politically motivated and emotionally driven’. Scarce’s work often references the on-going effects of colonisation on Aboriginal people, In particular her research focus has explored the impact of the removal and relocation of Aboriginal people from their homelands and the forcible removal of Aboriginal children from their families. (https://thisisnofantasy.com/artist/yhonnie-scarce/, accessed 10 September 2018)Artist's Statement 'The More Bones the Better', 2016 Yhonnie Scarce was born in Woomera, SA and belongs to the Kokatha and Nukunu peoples. Scarce embraces a non traditional approach to glass blowing using glass as more than a mere material, acting as a lens and a mirror, Scarce reflects and exposes the tragedies of Australia’s colonisation. She applies the technical rigours of traditional glass blowing techniques in an innovative and unconventional manner. In particular Scarce uses glass to explore the lives and histories of Aboriginal Australians. Hand blown glass is shaped, engraved, painted and smashed to create indigenous fruits and vegetables such as bush bananas, bush plums and long yams symbolic of her peoples culture and traditions. With their elongated, torso-like shapes, they even evoke human bodies. Akin to a gatherer of bush food Scarce creates glass-gatherings of the persecuted. The repetition of brittle ambiguous bodies collected for experimentation and examination conjures the relentless impact of colonisation and the litany of abuses suffered by Aboriginal people. Within her research Scarce encountered a variety of ethnographic studies examining the use of scientific interventions amongst Indigenous cultures. These include Government sanctioned illegal drug testing of children in orphanages and other dubious medical practices amongst indigenous prison inmates. This work metaphorically looks at these situations and poses questions of what might have gone on in such a laboratory. The judge of the 2017 Guirguis New Art Prize (GNAP), Simon Maidment, Senior Curator, Contemporary Art, National Gallery of Victoria said; “The winning work by Yhonnie Scarce captures the sensitivity to materials she displays throughout her artistic practice. The blown and shattered glass elements are a delicate contrast to the shocking and little discussed histories of Aboriginal exploitation and abuse in the name of science in Australia. Engaging this topic, this work is haunting, in the same way those lived and documented experiences continue to haunt the collective unconscious of this country. Yhonnie Scarce’s work, The More Bones the Better 2016, I believe makes an important contribution to the Collection of Federation University Australia and will engage and move diverse audiences with its technical accomplishment, beauty and message. Yhonnie Scarce was born in Woomera SA and belongs to the Kokatha and Nukunu peoples. Scarce embraces a non-traditional approach to glass blowing using her medium as more than a mere material. Applying the technical rigours of traditional glass blowing in an innovative and unconventional manner, Scarce’s glass objects act as a lens and a mirror to reflect and expose the tragedies of Australia’s colonisation and, in particular, explore the lives and histories of Aboriginal Australians. Hand-blown glass is shaped, engraved, painted and smashed to represent indigenous fruits and vegetables such as bush bananas, bush plums and long yams, symbolic of Scarce’s people’s culture and traditions. While these elongated shapes on the one hand represent fruit and vegetables, gathered and grouped as in the gathering of bush food, Scarce’s torso-like bodies and forms are glass ‘gatherings’ representative of the gathering of people. Here, the many brittle bodies act as a metaphor for the collection, experimentation and examinations undertaken by government authorities on Aboriginal communities researched by Scarce. Exposing a variety of ethnographic studies, examining the use of scientific interventions on Indigenous cultures, Scarce also revealed Government sanctioned illegal drug testing of children in orphanages and other dubious medical practices undertaken on indigenous prison inmates. Scarce’s gatherings also reflect the impact of colonisation and the relentless conjuring and litany of abuses suffered by Aboriginal people. The More Bones the Better metaphorically looks at these situations and poses questions of what was undertaken and investigated in these laboratories. guirguis new art prize, yhonnie scarce, glass, aboriginal

Josh MUIR (1991-05 February 2022) Yorta Yorta/Gunditjmara/Barkinjl Born Ballarat, Victoria Muir's art draws on hip-hop and street art culture and often depicts the history of indigenous people and European settlers. He spent a lot of time in his teens researching and enjoying public art, especially graffiti. Inspired by the commitment of graffers he was inspired by the concepts they illustrate. He started expressing his own ideas with pen and pad and once the basic concept down and it was tangible and could be converted that to canvas or walls. Muir experimented with spray and stencil work a lot in his teens and later branched out into acrylic paints, paint pens, and digital forms of Art. In 2016 Josh Muir's work 'Still Here', projected onto the front wall of the National Gallery of Victoria was critically acclaimed. At that time he stated: "‘I am a proud Yorta Yorta/ Gunditjmara man, born and living in Ballarat, Victoria. I hold my culture strong to my heart – it gives me a voice and a great sense of my identity. When I look around, I see empires built on Aboriginal land. I cannot physically change or shift this, though I can make the most of my culture in a contemporary setting and use my art projects to address current issues of reconciliation." In 2016 Josh Muir was awarded the second recipient of HMS Trust’s Hutchinson Indigenous Fellowship at University of Melbourne, based at the Victorian College of the Arts (VCA). The Fellowship was created to enable Indigenous artists to undertake significant projects of their choice. He was also a Telstra National Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander Youth Art Award winner. The Koorie Heritage Trust, the National Gallery of Australia, the National Gallery of Victoria, the Art Gallery of the Northern Territory and Federation University Australia all own his work. Digital output on stretched canvas.josh muir, artist, artwork, aboriginal, hutchinson indigenous fellowship

This artwork was created in collaboration by Shanaya Sheridan and Josh Muir in 2018. Josh Muir was a proud Yorta Yorta, Gunditjmara and Barkinji man, who holds his culture close to his heart as it gives him a voice and great sense of identity. Josh is a Ballarat-based multimedia artist. In 2015 Josh was the recipient of the Telstra National Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander Art Award – Youth Award and the Hutchinson Scholarship, through which he undertook a 12-month residency at the Victorian College of the Arts in Melbourne. Muir's work has been acquired by the Koorie Heritage Trust, The National Gallery of Australia, the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, the National Gallery of Victoria and was commissioned as a major project artist by White Night. Shanaya Sheridan, is a proud Yorta Yorta, Dja Dja Wurrung and Boon Wurrung woman who has resided in Ballarat for 20 years, after living in Horsham, Shepparton and Melbourne. Growing up and watching her Elders, and their style of artworks, Shanaya is influenced by a traditional style of Aboriginal art, mixing it up with contemporary colours. This reconciliation piece is Shanaya’s first commission. Artists' Statement: '“This painting represents reconciliation across all lands, from the skies down to the waters including the mountains, grass and sand. The hands represent people of all cultures reaching for a brighter future, and the men and women in talks of how reconciliation can be achieved. Last but not least, the footprints represent our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ancestors that have fought for reconciliation before us and their steps/progress towards reconciliation.' Digital prints of this artwork on aluminum are displayed at Federation University Australia campuses at Mt Helen, Gippsland (Churchill), Berwick, Brisbane and Horsham.reconciliation, josh muir, shanaya sheridan, aboriginal, reconciliation action plan

Poster - history of Australian flags. Covering histories of the following flags. New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Australian Aboriginal, Australian Red Ensign, Western Australia, Tasmania, Northern Territory, Norfolk Island, Governor General, Royal Australian Navy, Royal Australian Air Force and Her Majesty's the Queen Personal Flag for Australia

non-fictionA great local history of the Wodonga area. Starts with discussion of the Aboriginal inhabitants of the region and early contacts with European explorers and settlers. Explains the establishing of a customs post with its twin city Albury on the other side of the Murray River. The town grew subsequent to the opening of the first bridge across the Murray in 1860. Originally named Wodonga, its name was changed to Belvoir then later back to Wodonga.victoria. wodonga, settlers wodonga, indigenous australians wodonga

Kevin Coombs, OAM (born 30 May 1941) is an Australian wheelchair basketballer and athlete who competed at five Paralympics including the first Paralympic Games in 1960. He was the first Australian Aboriginal Paralympic competitor for Australia. Coombs was part of the Australia men's national wheelchair basketball team at the 1960 Rome, 1968 Tel Aviv, 1972 Heidelberg, 1980 Arnhem and 1984 New York/Stoke Mandeville Paralympics. He served as coach/captain at the 1972 games and as captain at the 1984 games. He also participated in athletics events at the 1968 and 1972 Paralympics. He captained the silver-medal-winning Australian wheelchair basketball team at the 1974 Commonwealth Paraplegic Games in Dunedin, led the Australian team in gold medal performances at the 1977 and 1982 FESPIC Games, captained the team at the 1977 Silver Jubilee Games, and played in the 1983 Wheelchair Basketball World Championship.[10][11] The 1980 Summer Paralympics were held in Arhmen, in The Netherlands, the sixth edition of the event.Plastic card, containing orange cardboard ID card, with photo inset.Front: Logos of 1980 Paralympics and Paralympic mascots (in Dutch) Olympische Spelen voor Gehandicapten 21 juni-5-juli Reverse: very degraded portrait photo of Kevin Coombs Nation - AUSTRALIA Name:- Coumbs Classification - 4 Startnr - 0087 Points 2

Kevin Richard Coombs, OAM (born 30 May 1941) is an Australian wheelchair basketballer and athlete who competed at 5 Paralympics including the first Paralympic Games in 1960. He was the first Australian Aboriginal Paralympic competitor for Australia.Grey plastic case containing silver coloured medal.Medal contains text - Australian Paraplegic Games Melbourne 1960 - Kevin Coombs, Javlin [sic] The lid on the case is inscribed with the word "TROPHY" and a laurel wreath. The bottom of the case is inscribed with "Casecraft. CAT. No 102". The interior of the case includes the text "Stokes (Australia) Limited - medallists and silversmtihs est. 1855:.australian paraplegic games, kevin coombs

Kevin Richard Coombs, OAM (born 30 May 1941) is an Australian wheelchair basketballer and athlete who competed at 5 Paralympics including the first Paralympic Games in 1960. He was the first Australian Aboriginal Paralympic competitor for Australia.Grey plastic medal case.The lid on the case is inscribed with the word "TROPHY" and a laurel wreath. The bottom of the case is inscribed with "Casecraft. CAT. No 102". The interior of the case includes he text "Stokes (Australia) Limited - medallists and silversmtihs est. 1855:.australian paraplegic games, kevin coombs

Kevin Richard Coombs, OAM (born 30 May 1941) is an Australian wheelchair basketballer and athlete who competed at 5 Paralympics including the first Paralympic Games in 1960. He was the first Australian Aboriginal Paralympic competitor for Australia.Silver medal from 1960 Australian Paraplegic Games - Javelin - Kevin Coombs.Front - Australian Paraplegic Games Melbourne 1960 - Javlin [sic] - Kevin Coombs Reverse - engraving of two hands grasping each other, with laurelaustralian paraplegic games, kevin coombs

Kevin Richard Coombs, OAM (born 30 May 1941) is an Australian wheelchair basketballer and athlete who competed at 5 Paralympics including the first Paralympic Games in 1960. He was the first Australian Aboriginal Paralympic competitor for Australia.Grey plastic case containing grey/silver coloured medal.Medal contains text - 4th Australian Paraplegic Games Brisbane 1966 - Kevin Coombs, Basketball The lid on the case is inscribed with the word "TROPHY" and a laurel wreath. The bottom of the case is inscribed with "Casecraft. CAT. No 102". The interior of the case includes the text "Stokes (Australia) Limited - medallists and silversmtihs est. 1855:.australian paraplegic games, kevin coombs

Kevin Richard Coombs, OAM (born 30 May 1941) is an Australian wheelchair basketballer and athlete who competed at 5 Paralympics including the first Paralympic Games in 1960. He was the first Australian Aboriginal Paralympic competitor for Australia.Silver / grey medal medal from 1966 Australian Paraplegic Games.held in BrisbaneFront - 4th Australian Paraplegic Games Brisbane 1966 Reverse - engraving of laurel wreath with "BASKETBALL" within the wreathaustralian paraplegic games

Kevin Richard Coombs, OAM (born 30 May 1941) is an Australian wheelchair basketballer and athlete who competed at 5 Paralympics including the first Paralympic Games in 1960. He was the first Australian Aboriginal Paralympic competitor for Australia.Grey plastic case containing silver coloured medal.Medal contains text - Victorian Paraplegic Games 1963 - Basketball, 2nd, Kevin Coombs The lid on the case is inscribed with the word "TROPHY" and a laurel wreath. The bottom of the case is inscribed with "Casecraft. CAT. No 102". The interior of the case includes the text "Stokes (Australasia) Limited - medallists and silversmtihs est. 1855:.kevin coombs

Kevin Richard Coombs, OAM (born 30 May 1941) is an Australian wheelchair basketballer and athlete who competed at 5 Paralympics including the first Paralympic Games in 1960. He was the first Australian Aboriginal Paralympic competitor for Australia.Grey plastic medal case.The lid on the case is inscribed with the word "TROPHY" and a laurel wreath. The bottom of the case is inscribed with "Casecraft. CAT. No 102". The interior of the case includes the text "Stokes (Australasia) Limited - medallists and silversmtihs est. 1855:.kevin coombs, victorian paraplegic games

Kevin Richard Coombs, OAM (born 30 May 1941) is an Australian wheelchair basketballer and athlete who competed at 5 Paralympics including the first Paralympic Games in 1960. He was the first Australian Aboriginal Paralympic competitor for Australia.Silver medal from 1963 Victorian Paraplegic Games.Front - Silver medal from 1963 Australian Paraplegic Games - Basketball - Kevin Coombs Reverse - engraving of two hands grasping each other, with laurelkevin coombs, victorian paraplegic games

Kevin Richard Coombs, OAM (born 30 May 1941) is an Australian wheelchair basketballer and athlete who competed at 5 Paralympics including the first Paralympic Games in 1960. He was the first Australian Aboriginal Paralympic competitor for Australia.Grey plastic case containing gold coloured medal.Medal contains text - Victorian Paraplegic Games 1963 - Shot Putt [sic] - 1st - Kevin Coombs The lid on the case is inscribed with the word "TROPHY" and a laurel wreath. The bottom of the case is inscribed with "Casecraft. CAT. No 102". The interior of the case includes the text "Stokes (Australasia) Limited - medallists and silversmtihs est. 1855:.australian paraplegic games, kevin coombs

Kevin Richard Coombs, OAM (born 30 May 1941) is an Australian wheelchair basketballer and athlete who competed at 5 Paralympics including the first Paralympic Games in 1960. He was the first Australian Aboriginal Paralympic competitor for Australia.Grey plastic medal case.The lid on the case is inscribed with the word "TROPHY" and a laurel wreath. The bottom of the case is inscribed with "Casecraft. CAT. No 102". The interior of the case includes the text "Stokes (Australasia) Limited - medallists and silversmtihs est. 1855:.kevin coombs, victorian paraplegic games

Kevin Richard Coombs, OAM (born 30 May 1941) is an Australian wheelchair basketballer and athlete who competed at 5 Paralympics including the first Paralympic Games in 1960. He was the first Australian Aboriginal Paralympic competitor for Australia.Gold medal from 1963 Victorian Paraplegic Games.Front - Gold medal from 1963 Australian Paraplegic Games - Shot Putt [sic] - 1st - Kevin Coombs Reverse - engraving of two hands grasping each other, with laurelkevin coombs, victorian paraplegic games

Jenna Lee dissects and reconstructs colonial 'Indigenous dictionaries' and embeds the works with new cultural meaning. Long obsessed with the duality of the destructive and healing properties that fire can yield, this element has been applied to the paper in the forms of burning and mark-making. In Without Us, Lee uses charcoal to conceal the text on the page, viewing this process as a ritualistic act of reclaiming and honouring Indigenous heritage while challenging the oppressive legacies of colonialism. Lee explains in Art Guide (2022), ‘These books in particular [used to create the proposed works] are Aboriginal language dictionaries—but there’s no such thing as “Aboriginal language”. There are hundreds of languages. The dictionary just presents words, with no reference to where they came from. It was specifically published by collating compendiums from the 1920s, 30s and 40s, with the purpose to give [non-Indigenous] people pleasant sounding Aboriginal words to name children, houses and boats. And yet the first things that were taken from us was our language, children, land and water. And the reason our words were so widely written down was because [white Australians] were trying to eradicate us. They thought we were going extinct. The deeper you get into it, the darker it gets. But the purpose of my work is to take those horrible things and cast them as something beautiful.’Framed artwork

Alice McGREGOR Born: 1908; unknown parents. Possibly adopted by the Salter family? Electoral Roll 1936: Highland Terrace Kangaroo Flat. Alice Mary Salter and William Robert Salter living together; presumed to be sister and brother. William Robert Salter was killed in a MVA in Bendigo in 1937 aged 26. In Victoria in 1938, Alice Mary Salter married James Thomas McGregor (born Victoria 1917, died Victoria 1983, buried Fawkner Cemetery) Lived: 1968; 22 Wade Street Golden Square Alice McGregor Died: 1999 aged 91 at Anne Caudle Centre, Bendigo Buried: Kangaroo Flat Cemetery See additional research. Postcard Album of Alice McGregor contained 86 post cards.Postcard Album of Alice McGregor containing 86 post cards. See 1400. Colour photo of an aboriginal man and woman in a bush setting somewhere in S.W. Western Australia Addressed to Miss A. Stapleton, Arcade, Bendigo, Victoria Sender - Emma (?) PO stamp dated July 7, 1905, Kalgoorlie postcard, collector, alice mcgregor

William (Bill) ONUS (15 November 1906-1968) Born Cummeragunja Aboriginal Reserve, Murray River, New South Wales Clan: Wiradjuri William Townsend (Bill) Onus was a shearer, actor and activist who revived the Australian Aboriginese League in Melbourne in 1946. He retired from politics in to start the Aboriginal Enterprises workship in Belgrave with his brother Eric. They produced boomerangs, woomeras, fabrics and greeting cards imprinted with Aboriginal motifs. He ran the business from his small factory and shop at Belgrave in the Dandenong Ranges. To promote his wares Bill Onus toured widely in Victoria and beyond as a travelling showman, giving demonstrations of boomerang-throwing, which he advocated as a national sport. (ADB) Bill Onus adopted similar imagery to that which appeared in mass-produced indigenised design; however, he used such works to draw attention to his political work with the ‘Committee for Aboriginal Citizen Rights’ and the ‘Australian Aborigines League.’ William McLintock (Lin) Onus is the son of Bill Onus. Wooden plate decorated with Aboriginal design by Bill Onus.Stamped on back "Made in Australia Bill Onus"aboriginal, bill onus, aboriginal enterprise novelties, ceramics

Maree Clarke is a pivotal figure in the reclamation of south-east Australian Aboriginal art and cultural practices and has a passion for reviving and sharing elements of Aboriginal culture that were lost – or lying dormant – as a consequence of colonisation. She a leader in nurturing and promoting the diversity of contemporary Koorie artists through her revival of traditional possum skin cloaks, together with contemporary designs of kangaroo teeth necklaces, river reed necklaces and string headbands adorned with kangaroo teeth and echidna quills. River Reed Necklace forms a key element of the artist’s practice regenerating cultural practices and strengthening cultural identity and knowledge. Maree Clarke has exhibited widely both nationally and internationally, and in 2021 she was the subject of a major survey exhibition Maree Clarke – Ancestral Memories at the National Gallery of Victoria. Other recent exhibitions include Tarnanthi, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide (2021), The National, Museum of Contemporary Art Sydney (2021), Reversible Destiny, Tokyo Photographic Museum, Tokyo Japan (2021) and the King Wood Mallesons Contemporary Art Prize, for which she was awarded the Victorian Artist award. In 2020 she was awarded the Linewide Commission for the Metro Tunnel project and was the recipient of the Australia Council Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Fellowship.