Serving Country
The Serving Country exhibition, by Belinda Mason and Dieter Knierim, acknowledges and recognises the valuable contribution by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men and women have made to Australian Defence Service. The portraits, created during the Redfern Coloured Diggers March in April 2014, were first displayed as a part of 2014 VIVID Festival Wartime Legends light show at Sydney University. During 2014 NAIDOC, Western Sydney University exhibited 20 of the portraits which were printed on 60cm x 40cm brushed steel panels. In conjunction with the 2015 ANZAC Celebrations Penrith Regional Gallery featured the works as part of their exhibition’Home/Front. During 2015 NAIDOC week, with the assistance of the Department of Veterans Affairs, the portraits were exhibited at the Headquarters of the Department of Defence in Canberra. To coincide with 2014 Remembrance Day, the portraits were exhibited at Currumbin RLS Club. The works returned to Western Sydney University in late 2015 till early 2016 as part their exhibition ‘Remembering H.A.C’ In April 2016 the work was displayed as part of the Sydney HEAD ON Photography Festival, and was launched in conjunction with the Coloured Diggers March at the Redfern Community Centre. This work now has over 100 participants from across Australia and is available for display.