From more than 240 entries and 75 finalists, sixty-nine year old Darwin artist Harold Joseph Thomas (Bundoo) has officially been announced the winner of the 33rd Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Awards (NATSIAA), Australia’s most prestigious Indigenous art prize.
“I’m just overwhelmed and honoured to receive such a prestigious award, which shows the excellence of artists and craftspeople throughout Aboriginal and Torres Strait Australia”, said Thomas.
The winning work, Tribal abduction, tells of the part destruction of an Aboriginal family. Speaking about this poignant work Thomas notes, “It’s a setting in outback of Australia emphasising the human form entwined to tell the story of pathos and drama, especially the abduction of children from their tribal family.”
A local Darwin artist, Thomas is a descendant of the Luritja and Wambai peoples of Central Australia. Taken from his family at the age of 7, Thomas was sent to an Anglican institution for Aboriginal boys and was later fostered by an Anglican priest and his family.
The judging panel – Vernon Ah Kee, respected contemporary artist, Kimberley Moulton, Senior Curator, South Eastern Australia Aboriginal Collections, Museum Victoria and Don Whyte, artist and philanthropist, significant contributor to the NT arts community – said that “the potency of the subject matter coupled with Thomas” practiced hand and classical composition make the work a compelling choice this year. The tension and anger in the work is contrasted with the dread and fear often espoused in accounts of stolen” children. Particularly, the painting depicts the violence present in the act. It also speaks to the legacy of generational trauma and this positions the work both as an affecting history painting and a blazing commentary on the ongoing manifestations of colonial brutality.”
An acclaimed contemporary artist, Thomas has exhibited widely with his work is housed in many major collections around the country. The win adds to a remarkable line of achievements for Thomas, who is most known for designing the Australian Aboriginal flag in 1971.
In 1966 Thomas won a scholarship to study art at the South Australian School of Art and his first exhibition in 1967 of water colours was opened by Don Dunstan. In 1969 Thomas was the first Aboriginal to graduate from the South Australian School of Art and in 1970 he was the first Aboriginal to be employed by a state museum. In 1971 Thomas designed the Aboriginal flag, which was recognised as an official flag under the Commonwealth Flag Act in 1995. In 1984 Thomas was selected to hang in the inaugural National Aboriginal Art Award (now known as Telstra NATSIAA).
Thomas will receive $50,000 in prize money which he says will go towards his next major art piece and replenishing of his art supplies.
Director Marcus Schutenko congratulated Thomas on his win; “This winning work by local artist Harold Thomas presents a raw truth which provides space for cathartic reflection. The judges were provided with the breadth of what is happening across Australia and a strong representation of country, culture, identity and politics. From what was an extremely competitive field, Vernon, Kimberley and Don have brought together a wonderfully eclectic assembly of finalists whose works have created a spectacular exhibition,” Schutenko said.
Five additional artists are recognised for the following awards:
Betty Kuntiwa Pumani from Mimili, South Australia, winner of the Telstra General Painting Award.
Judges’ comments: “This work achieves a great sense of fluidity and movement that is not always present in field paintings of this scale. The impressive choice of palette creates an elaborate tonal depth that pulls the viewer into the work.”
Robert Pau from Cairns (born Townsville), Queensland, winner of the Telstra Work on Paper Award
Judges’ comments: “The cinematic composition of the battle scene, dense with detail of the Erub people fighting in the Battle of Bikar, was the judge¹s first impression of this work. It evokes classical war painting, depicting a central staged battle filled with a vista of busy action. We witness the warrior figures across the sky calling the people to fight. It is a work of strength, power and fighting for Country.”
John Mawurndjul from Mumeka, Northern Territory, winner of the Telstra Bark Painting Award
Judges’ comments: “John Mawurndjul’s masterful hand shone through in this category with his intricate line work in Dilebang. His accomplished technique has ensured that there are no weak points across the surface of the bark that strongly details the sacred site of Djang and the creation by Ngalyod the rainbow serpent. This beautiful work is a reminder of why artists still chose bark as a platform to express who they are.”
Nicole Monks from Sydney, NSW (born in Subiaco West Australia) winner of the Wandjuk Marika Memorial 3D Award (sponsored by Telstra)
Judges’ comments: “The judges were incredibly moved by Nicole Monks’ performance work, We are all animals, a powerful attempt to negotiate a space as an Aboriginal women caught between two worlds. This deeply personal and heartfelt work critically looks at colonial legacy. Monks¹ sheds the trappings of the wool, through the use of the sheepskin covering her head, whilst wearing an elaborate emu feather skirt. Recovering and reflecting, her pose evokes museology and archival photography.”
Ishmael Marika from Nhulunbuy, Northern Territory, winner of the Telstra Youth Award
Judges’ comments: Sunlight energy II by Ishmael Marika is a clear, well-constructed film that gives the viewer a strong sense of the way light influences the space around us. The work poetically shares Marika¹s experience of feeling the energy from the sunlight at Lake Mungo while also incorporating the elements of earth, wind, fire and water and capturing how sunlight informs each.
Telstra NATSIAA finalists’ works will be exhibited at the MAGNT from Saturday 6 August until Sunday 30 October, 2016.
Image: Harold Joseph Thomas (Bundoo), winner of the 2016 Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Awards