Australian Aboriginal Art
Sydney’s Australian Museum in Hyde Park has two interesting exhibitions, one on Indigenous Aboriginal life and Living Dangerously, a display of the dangerous insects, reptiles, animals, and marine life around the country. A stuffed crocodile about 7 feet long looked menacing in the same case with several stuffed poisonous reptiles.
An interactive display of waves coming ashore showed poisonous jellyfish, sharks, manta rays, sea snakes, and dragon fish found in Australian waters. (We’ll be at the Great Barrier Reef in a few weeks where we might encounter some of these creatures.)
The most impressive galleries in the museum were devoted to indigenous Australians, the Aborigines, the first people of Australia. We walked through the exhibition, amazed at the beauty and simplicity of aboriginal art, depicted in bold, primary colors.
Most works were symbols of animals, horses, reptiles, and birds vividly painted on bark.
The Dreaming
Two common subjects in Aboriginal art are the Dreaming, a spiritual experience common to all the indigenous tribes, and the Rainbow Serpent, a reptile with mystical powers about the creative and destructive forces of nature.
Rainbow Serpent
Several works dealt with Aboriginal people’s interpretation of Christianity seen through their art.
Aboriginal interpretation of The Last Supper
If you’re interested in reading about the process of writing and researching an international thriller, you might be interested in my new blog, “Anatomy of a Thriller.” I’m coming to the end of writing my first international thriller, tentatively titled,“Menaggio,” which takes place in present day Milan, the center of Italian finance, media, industry, technology, and fashion.
Take a look at the blog and please share links with writers or readers who might be interested. Thanks for your interest.
What fun, what colors/shapes
Great pictures of the stunning art work.