In recognition of this year’s NAIDOC theme, ‘For Our Elders’, we are honoured to welcome Wadawurrung Elder, Aunty Marlene Gilson to discuss her art and share her cultural knowledge, in conversation with Kiri Smart from the Art Gallery of Ballarat.
Aunty Marlene Gilson is an acclaimed Wadawurrung artist whose multi-figure paintings overturn the colonial grasp on the past by reclaiming and re-contextualising the presentation of historical events. Learning her Wadawurrung history from her grandmother, Aunty Marlene began painting while recovering from an illness. She is the custodian of a fascinating oral history about the Wadawurrung people and the Eureka Stockade. This is reflected in her painting recently commissioned by the Eureka Centre that will soon be featured in its interpretative exhibition. This painting will be unveiled at this event.
Image: Marlene Gilson, ‘Eureka’ 2022, 60 x 70 cm, acrylic on linen, Eureka Centre Collection. The acquisition was supported by the Australian Government’s Culture, Heritage and Arts Regional Tourism (CHART) program, 2022.
