The Art of Tasmania's Black War
The National Picture will shine a light on two enthralling yet under-examined figures in Australian history: colonial artist Benjamin Duterrau and the ‘Conciliator’ George Augustus Robinson. Drawing key loans from national and international collections, including five of the seven known ‘proclamation boards’, The National Picture will examine the work of colonial artists from the declaration of martial law in Van Diemen’s Land in 1828 and the beginnings of George Augustus Robinson’s ill-fated ‘Friendly Mission’ through to Duterrau’s death in 1851.
The exhibition (12.05.2018 - 29.07.2018) will also include a group of works dating from the 1920s to the present day that reference and respond to the many confronting issues that continue to arise from Tasmania’s complex past. (Text: NGA)