The Heidelberg School was the name given to a circle of 19th century Australian artists, led by Tom Roberts, whose figure paintings expressed deeply rooted human fears, wishes, and preoccupations. This comprehensive overview examines the art in a social and cultural context and reveals how the paintings helped to develop the rural mythology extant in Australia at the time.
The Bushman' is a perennial but changing image. The transformation of that image is important. It symbolizes the perception of Bushman or San society, of the ideas and values of ethnographers who have worked with Bushman peoples, and those of other anthropologists who use this work. Anthropology and the Bushman covers early travellers and settlers, classic nineteenth and twentieth-century ethnographers, North American and Japanese ecological traditions, the approaches of African ethnographers, and recent work on advocacy and social development. It reveals the impact of Bushman studies on anthropology and on the public. The book highlights how Bushman or San ethnography has contributed to anthropological controversy, for example in the debates on the degree of incorporation of San society within the wider political economy, and on the validity of the case for 'indigenous rights' as a special kind of human rights. Examining the changing image of the Bushman, Barnard provides a new contribution to an established anthropology debate.
This collection of essays explores historical, geographical, and cultural factors that contribute to our understanding of places and settings of Australian transient communities. From Gwalia and Kalgoorlie in Western Australia, Charters Towers in Queensland, Broken Hill in New South Wales, and Queenstown in Tasmania, the places provide opportunity to revisit sites of history from the different angles of architecture, landscape theory, social history, and visual arts. They also provide a springboard for thinking through the pressing issues of contemporary Australians and counterparts in other 'post-settler' societies. [Subject: Australian Studies, History]
The Bushman soldiers were the most outstanding all-round fighters of the Border War. As the first of the indigenous population to take up arms on South Africa's behalf, they were among the last to lay them down. The border's oldest and most bush-wise people, they became feared as relentless trackers and dedicated soldiers. Coming from a primitive hunter/gatherer culture, they responded well to a crash course in modern warfare. Their use of automatic weapons and mortars, coupled with their phenomenal tracking abilities, made them a formidable fighting force. During Operation Savannah they were deployed in a conventional role as Battle-Group Alpha, part of Task Force Zulu, and advanced approximately 2,000 kilometers in a month. Afterwards, some of the Bushmen were trained as parachutists and served as Recces behind enemy lines. Others were attached to various units as trackers and guides. Their loyalty and bravery was recognized in the award of Honoris Crux decorations to members and former members of this elite corps. Controversy followed the battalion to South Africa after the war. Persecuted for centuries, the Bushmen have displayed an uncanny ability to survive and have adapted remarkably well to the modern world. Their transition from the Stone Age in less than 20 years is a story, which will never be forgotten. Hailed as the 'Gurkhas of Africa' the Bushmen have proved themselves second to none. This is an exceptional record of 31 and 201 Battalions and their remarkable personnel, fully illustrated with many photographs.
The first full length history of bush walking in Australia. Offers some marvellous pen portraits of the extraordinary characters that pioneered bushwalking in this country.
A Companion to Australian Art is a thorough introduction to the art produced in Australia from the arrival of the First Fleet in 1788 to the early 21st century. Beginning with the colonial art made by Australia’s first European settlers, this volume presents a collection of clear and accessible essays by established art historians and emerging scholars alike. Engaging, clearly-written chapters provide fresh insights into the principal Australian art movements, considered from a variety of chronological, regional and thematic perspectives. The text seeks to provide a balanced account of historical events to help readers discover the art of Australia on their own terms and draw their own conclusions. The book begins by surveying the historiography of Australian art and exploring the history of art museums in Australia. The following chapters discuss art forms such as photography, sculpture, portraiture and landscape painting, examining the practice of art in the separate colonies before Federation, and in the Commonwealth from the early 20th century to the present day. This authoritative volume covers the last 250 years of art in Australia, including the Early Colonial, High Colonial and Federation periods as well as the successive Modernist styles of the 20th century, and considers how traditional Aboriginal art has adapted and changed over the last fifty years. The Companion to Australian Art is a valuable resource for both undergraduate and graduate students of the history of Australian artforms from colonization to postmodernism, and for general readers with an interest in the nation’s colonial art history.
Defining an artistic era or movement is often a difficult task, as one tries to group individualistic expressions and artwork under one broad brush. Such is the case with impressionism, which culls together the art of a multitude of painters in the mid-19th century, including Monet, Cézanne, Renoir, Degas, and van Gogh. Basically, impressionism involved the shedding of traditional painting methods. The subjects of art were taken from everyday life, as opposed to the pages of mythology and history. In addition, each artist painted to express feelings of the moment instead of hewing to time-honoured standards. This description of impressionism, obviously, is quite broad and can apply to a wide array of styles. Nonetheless, it remains a very important school in the annals of art. Any current or budding art aficionado should become familiar with the impressionist movement and its impact on the art world. This book presents a sweeping study of this artistic period, from its origins to its manifestations in the works of some of art history's most revered painters. Following this overview is a substantial and selective bibliography, featuring access through author, title, and subject indexes.
