Vincent Namatjira

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Vincent Namatjira (born June 14, 1983 in Alice Springs , Australia ) is an Australian painter and artist of the Arrernte tribe . In 2019 he won the Ramsay Art Prize , which is awarded annually in Australia to artists under 40 years of age. After being nominated several times, Namatjira was the first Aboriginal to win the renowned Australian Archibald Prize in 2020 , which is awarded annually for outstanding portrait painting. Vincent Namatjira is a great-grandson of the watercolor artist Albert Namatjira .

Life

Vincent Namatjira was born in Alice Springs in 1983 and lived with his family in Hermannsburg . When he was six years old, his mother died in a car accident. He and his sister were then placed in foster care in Perth, 300 kilometers away. Namatjira describes this period of his life as very disturbing: “After my mother's funeral, they just came and just took me. ... Hard life growing up by strangers and strangers all around me. And going to that place I've never been before in my life. ”(In German:“ After my mother's funeral, they just came and took me with them. ... A hard life, growing up with strangers and strangers around me to go to this place I had never been to in my life. ")

After he finished school, he moved back to the area where he came from and renewed ties with his family. For Aborigines, the connection with the land and the connection with their ancestors is a central element of their society . Because Vincent had to live with foster families far away from his tribe for many years, he had lost all of this: “When I finished high school I came back to Hermannsburg. I spent time reconnecting with my extended family, I had to relearn my language, I wasn't sure what to do with myself, where I belonged, who I was. ”(In German:“ When I finished school, came I went back to Hermannsburg. I spent time reconnecting with my extended family, I had to learn my language again, I wasn't sure what to do with myself, where I belonged, who I was. ”Inspired by his Family - his aunt was an important artisan and Vincent's wife and father-in-law are also artistically active - Vincent Namatijra began painting traditional dot paintings in 2011 . He has been painting figuratively since 2013 . Today Namatjira lives with his family in Indulkana , in the administrative area of Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara in South Australia . He works at the Iwantja Arts arts center , run by members of the indigenous community .

Works (selection)

Albert's Story (2014)

The main reason for Vincent Namatjira's turn to modern representational painting was the realization that he is related to the indigenous painter Albert Namatjira, who is very famous in Australia : “I started sketching to see if I could draw. Got out my pencils and started sketching to see if it was in my blood. It's there alright. "(In German:" I started drawing to see if I could paint at all. I took out my pencils and started sketching to see if it was in my blood. It is there, clearly.")

Vincent Namatjira's great-grandfather Albert Namatjira was the first Aborigine to paint in the modern, western style. His watercolors show landscapes of Australia that made him famous. In 1953 he received the Queen's Coronation Medal and met the Queen in Canberra in 1954 . Although he was famous, he could not buy a house because Aboriginal people could not do so. Since he supported many members of his family group financially, he lived in poor conditions. It was not until 1957 that he was the first Aborigine to be granted civil rights. These rights also included the fact that he was allowed to purchase alcohol, but he was prohibited from sharing it with other Aborigines. In 1958 he was charged and convicted of this alleged violation of the law. He spent two months in prison. A year later, he died of a heart attack at the age of 57.

Vincent Namatjira created moments from the life of his great-grandfather in a series of 13 pictures. The painting Albert Namatjira Receiving Coronation Medal by Her Majesty shows the Queen handing him the medal. Another painting, Albert Namatjira Convicted of Selling Alcohol, Long Finger of the Law, shows two white police officers arresting and taking Albert away for allegedly giving alcohol to Aboriginal people. All paintings were purchased by the Queensland Art Gallery after the exhibition and can also be viewed online. With the series of pictures around Albert's story , Vincent Namatjira ascertains his personal family history and at the same time takes a committed position on the massive injustices to which Aborigines were and still are. Bruce McLean, curator of the museum explains: “Reconnecting with his history, it's had a massive impact on Vincent and has given his art a real impetus and a real importance and poignancy.” (In German: “The preoccupation with his history had a massive Influence on Vincent and has given his art a real impetus and a real meaning and urgency. ")

Portraits of international personalities (2016)

Vincent Namatijra was best known for his humorous portraits of international politicians and powerful people. Photos often serve as a template for the pictures. He works with bright acrylic paints and exaggerates the physiognomy of his central figures into the grotesque, so that they almost look like cartoons . This ease of expression together with the bright colors of the pictures secretly makes the viewer smile at the powerful political leaders: "This comedic ambiguity has been key to Namatjira's powerful impact on the Australian art scene." the key to Namatjira's strong influence on the Australian art scene. ")

Vincent Namatjira has repeatedly portrayed Queen Elisabeth and James Cook . In the painting Captain Cook with the Queen and Me (2017) Vincent Namatjira stands between James Cook on the left and the Queen on the right. By representing himself in the same time plane as the Queen and James Cook, he quasi abolishes time: "Vincent's pictures often possess a magic-realist quality in which time bends and the dead haunt the living." (In German: "Vincent's pictures." often have a magical-realistic quality in which time bends and the dead haunt the living. ”) Painting, Vincent Namatjira ascertains the history not only of his tribe, but of Australia and the consequences of colonization.

In 2016 he made paintings of all seven previous Prime Ministers of Australia, whose tenure he had witnessed. He produced an accompanying video for the exhibition in which his portraits were animated. Their mouths opened and closed, and you could hear original statements by the ministers on the topics of Aborigines : “By including these audio samples, Namatjira also foregrounds his own Aboriginal identity and makes it a central aspect of these caricatures. When read in conjunction with the video, these paintings no longer purport to be faithful representations, but rather a specific view of Australia's leaders and wealthiest citizens as seen through the eyes of an Aboriginal artist. ”(In German:“ Through the inclusion of these audio samples Namatjira also puts his own Aboriginal identity in the foreground and makes it a central aspect of these cartoons. When read in conjunction with the video, these images no longer pretend to be faithful representations, but rather a specific view of Australia Leaders and wealthiest citizens, seen through the eyes of an Aboriginal artist. ”) Namatjira also painted Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin , among others . He has also repeatedly portrayed members of the British royal family, most recently in his composition The Royal Tour (2020).

Legends and The Richest (2018)

For his series about famous Aborigines, Namatjira painted portraits of artists such as Archie Roach (singer), Eddie Mabo (political activist for the Aborigines) and Gordon Benett (singer). Vincent Namatjira emphasizes: “I'll keep using my practice as a platform to make sure there's a remote Indigenous voice as part of the conversation - that's really important to me”. (In German: "I will continue to use my work as a platform to ensure that an indigenous voice is part of the conversation from a distance - that is really important to me.")

For The Richest he portrayed the seven richest Australians, including Blair Parry-Okeden , Gina Rinehart and Harry Triguboff . In his painting, Namatjira uses the humorous alienation of the people in order to break the power of these figures in portraits and make them look ridiculous or at least funny . “'The paintbrush is a weapon', he says, meaning that if it's wielded with intent it can have an impact.” (In German: “'The paintbrush is a weapon', he says, meaning that if he is used consciously, can have a great effect. ")

Portrait of Adam Goodes (Archibald Prize 2020)

The portrait, for which Vincent Namatjira was awarded the Archibald Art Prize in 2020, is entitled Stand Strong for who you are and shows Vincent and the famous Australian indigenous soccer player Adam Goodes shaking hands, while Namatjira holds the Aboriginal flag in the other hand . At the top left and in the center are smaller drawings by Goodes. One shows him performing a kind of Aboriginal war dance on the occasion of a goal he scored , throwing an imaginary spear into the audience. The second drawing shows Goodes lifting his shirt to draw attention to his skin color and origins in protest against racial abuse by the audience, a gesture first demonstrated in 1993 by the also indigenous Australian soccer player Nicky Winmar.

Adam Goodes is a famous former player for the Sydney Swans , an Australian Football League club . With him as a player, the club won the championship twice. Goodes himself won the Brownlow Medal twice (2003 and 2006) , which is awarded by the referees to the best and fairest footballers. In 2014 he won the Australian of the Year election . This award is not an audience award, but is awarded by the Prime Minister. The criteria for the award are: "Significant contribution to the Australian community and nation, An inspirational role model for the Australian community, Demonstrated excellence in their field". (In German: "A significant contribution to the Australian community and nation, an inspiring role model for the Australian community, proven excellence in their field.")

Goodes is an Aboriginal from the Adnyamathanha tribe and has campaigned for the rights of the indigenous people for years. Because of his dealings with the Aborigines, Goodes said at the time that he was ashamed to be an Australian. As a result, there were serious racist insults on the part of the spectators at the games, which culminated in the fact that he should go back to the zoo he had come from and that he was a monkey . The insults got so bad that Goodes took a leave of absence in 2015 and ended his career at the end of the season. In 2019, two documentaries about Goodes and his experiences with racism were shot, The Final Quarter and The Australian Dream .

Vincent Namatjira saw one of these documentaries and decided to portray the footballer: “When I saw the documentary ... my guts were churning as I relived Adam's experiences of relentless racism on and off the field. Memories of my own experiences were stirred up ”. (In German: "When I saw the documentary, my mind was racing as I relived Adam's experiences of relentless racism on and off the field. Memories of my own experiences were stirred up.")

Mural in the foyer of the Museum of Contemporary Art Sydney (2021)

The painting is 15 meters long and is Namatjira's largest painting to date. The project is one of a series of the museum where artists are invited to paint the foyer. Vincent Namatjira's painting consists of portraits of significant Aborigines such as Adam Goodes , Eddie Mabo , Lionel Rose , Albert Namatjira and his father-in-law, Kunmanara (Jimmy) Pompey, who was also a painter. Vincent Namatjira is not just about portraying heroes of the Aborigines, but above all to make it clear that everyone has suffered from the still everyday racism in Australia against the Aborigines and thus embody parts of his life story.

In the portrait he is standing on his great-grandfather's old pickup truck and is holding an Aboriginal flag in his hand: “In this, his painting will perhaps best be seen as an abbreviated history of Aboriginal excellence that ties into a representation of a single figure: the young artist, standing on the shoulders of giants, reaching forwards. ”(In German:“ In this sense, his painting is perhaps best understood as a shortened history of the excellence of the Aborigines, which leads to the representation of a single figure: the young artist who stands on the shoulders of giants and reaches forward. ”) The painting will be presented to the public on February 26th.

Awards

Solo exhibitions (selection)

  • 2013: Vincent Namatjira , Marshall Arts Gallery, Adelaide, Australia
  • 2014: Vincent Namatjira - Albert's Story , Marshall Arts Gallery, Adelaide, Australia
  • 2016: Vincent Namatjira - Solo Exhibition , This is no Fantasy Gallery (Diane Tanzer and Nicola Stein), Melbourne, Australia
  • 2018: First international solo exhibition at Art Basel Miami, Miami, USA
  • 2019: Vincent Namatjira: Coming to America , This is no Fantasy Gallery (Diane Tanzer and Nicola Stein), Melbourne, Australia
  • 2020: Vincent Namatjira: The Royal Tour , This is no Fantasy Gallery (Diane Tanzer and Nicola Stein), Melbourne, Australia

Participation in exhibitions (selection)

  • 2013: Finalists exhibition at the Outback Art Award , Broken Hill Regional Art Gallery, Broken Hill, Australia
  • 2013: Exhibition of finalists at the John Fries Memorial Prize 2013 , Copyright Agency, Sydney, Australia
  • 2014: Exhibition of finalists at Telstra National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Awards (NATSIAA) , Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory , Darwin, Australia
  • 2014: Finalists exhibition at The Alice Prize , The Alice Springs Art Foundation, Alice Springs, Australia
  • 2015: Indigenous Australia: Enduring Civilization , British Museum , London, England
  • 2015: Finalists exhibition at the 2015 John Fries Memorial Prize , Copyright Agency, Sydney, Australia
  • 2016: TarraWarra Biennial 2016: Endless Circulation , TarraWarra Museum of Art, Healesville, Australia
  • 2017: Exhibition of finalists at the Ramsay Art Prize , Art Gallery of South Australia , Adelaide, Australia
  • 2018: Exhibition of finalists at Telstra National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Awards (NATSIAA) , Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin, Australia
  • 2018: Finalists exhibition at The Alice Prize , The Alice Springs Art Foundation, Alice Springs, Australia
  • 2018: A Lightness of Spirit is the Measure of Happiness , Australian Center for Contemporary Art , Melbourne, Australia
  • 2019: Just Not Australian , Artspace Gallery, Sydney, Australia
  • 2020: A fresh look on Cook , Flinders University Art Museum, Adelaide, Australia

Works in collections (selection)

literature

  • Heath Aarons; Justine Ellis; Dan Rule (Ed.): Vincent Namatjira: The Royal Tour . With an essay by Tony Albert. Perimeter Distribution, Melbourne 2020, ISBN 978-0-648-68018-5 .
  • Gaye Sculthorpe (Ed.): Indigenous Australia: Enduring Civilization . Exhibition catalog of the exhibition at the British Museum 2015. British Museum Press, London 2015, ISBN 978-0-7141-2694-4 .

Web links

Commons : Australian Aboriginal culture  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. Matthew Smith: 2019 Indigenous artist Vincent Namatjira wins the $ 100,000 Ramsay Art Prize. Australian Broadcasting Corporation , May 24, 2019, accessed January 3, 2021 .
  2. Finalists for 2017. Art Gallery of New South Wales , accessed January 3, 2021 .
  3. Finalists for 2018. Art Gallery of New South Wales , accessed January 3, 2021 .
  4. Finalists for 2019. Art Gallery of New South Wales , accessed January 3, 2021 .
  5. Stephanie Convery: Archibald prize 2020: Vincent Namatjira named winner for portrait of Adam Goodes. The Guardian , September 25, 2020, accessed January 3, 2021 .
  6. a b c Kerry Brewster: The Namatjira name lives on in the art world. abc.net Australian Broadcasting Corporation , June 11, 2015, accessed January 6, 2021 .
  7. Laura Thomson: Vincent Namatjira at This is no fantasy + Dianne Tanzer Gallery, Melbourne. ocula.com, February 3, 2016, accessed January 6, 2021 .
  8. Wes Hill: The Wry Humor of Vincent Namatjira's Portraits. frieze.com, December 19, 2018, accessed January 6, 2021 .
  9. a b Nathalie King: Vincent Namatjira in Conversation with Natalie King. ocula.com, November 24, 2018, accessed January 6, 2021 .
  10. a b c Wes Hill: Close up: The Queen and I. Wes Hill on Vincent Namatjiras Queen Elisabeth and Vincent (on Country), 2018. Artforum , October 2019, accessed January 7, 2021 .
  11. Kerry Brewster: Younger Namatjira breaks from family style with bold, fresh paintings. abc.net Australian Broadcasting Corporation , July 10, 2015, accessed January 10, 2021 .
  12. ^ Namatjira, Albert (1902-1959). angeg.gov.au, accessed on January 10, 2021 .
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  14. Albert's Story. Vincent Namatjira. collection.qagoma.qld.gov.au, accessed January 11, 2021 .
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  16. ^ In the gallery: Vincent Namatjira The Royal Tour. thisisnofantasy.com, accessed January 10, 2021 .
  17. Sherry Paik: Vincent Namatjira. Biography. ocula.com, 2018, accessed January 11, 2021 .
  18. Nick Galvin: Namatjira's descendant: 'Art has changed my life'. The Sydney Morning Herald , June 7, 2020, accessed January 12, 2021 .
  19. At the gallery: Legends and The Richest. thisisnofantasy.com, accessed January 11, 2021 .
  20. Vincent Namatjira's 'cheeky revenge': the Archibald prize winner's past work in pictures. The Guardian , September 28, 2020, accessed January 11, 2021 .
  21. a b c Quentin Sprague: The paintbrush is a weapon: Vincent Namatjira. themonthly.com.au, February 2021, accessed February 8, 2021 .
  22. Jake Niall: When Nicky Winmar did this 25 years ago: 'I'm proud to be black'. The Age , April 14, 2018, accessed January 12, 2021 .
  23. Goodes wins second Brownlow. Sydney Morning Herald , September 25, 2006, accessed January 12, 2021 .
  24. ↑ nominate . So how does nomination work. Australian of the Year , accessed January 12, 2021 .
  25. ^ Christoph Sydow: Riot in Australia. Racists wear down football stars. Der Spiegel , July 30, 2015, accessed January 12, 2021 .
  26. Andrea Booth: Adam Goodes' leave from AFL this weekend should fuel shame: Bartlett. National Indigenous Television, July 31, 2015, accessed January 12, 2021 .
  27. ^ The Final Quarter. Shark Islands Production, accessed January 12, 2021 .
  28. ^ Danny Leigh: The Australian Dream looks back on a shameful episode in sports history. Financial Times , June 10, 2020, accessed January 12, 2021 .
  29. ^ Archibald: Vincent Namatjira named art prize's first Aboriginal winner. BBC , September 25, 2020, accessed January 12, 2021 .
  30. Emily Cosenza: Indigenous painter continues family honor. Canberra Times.com.au, June 7, 2020, accessed January 4, 2021 .
  31. Vincent Namatjira. (PDF; 182 kB) In: Galerie Zadra.com. October 21, 2013, accessed January 4, 2021 .
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  33. ^ Sangeeta Singh-Kurtz: Art Basel's buzziest exhibit makes fun of global despots. In: Quartz - Global Business Journalism.com. December 8, 2018, accessed January 4, 2021 .
  34. Tristen Harwood: Vincent Namatjira: Coming to America. In: art-almanac.com. June 28, 2019, accessed January 4, 2021 .
  35. Tiarney Miekus: Having won the Archibald, Namatjira tours with the royals. The Age , December 4, 2020, accessed January 4, 2021 .
  36. Broken Hill Outback Open Art Prize 2013 shortlisted finalists include ... In: www.ilovebrokenhill.com. July 4, 2013, accessed December 30, 2020 .
  37. ^ John Fries Memorial Prize 2013 Finalists Exhibition. In: johnfriesaward.com. Accessed December 30, 2020 .
  38. Finalists for 31st Telstra National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Award. (PDF; 221 kB) In: Northern Territory Government Newsroom. May 27, 2014, accessed December 30, 2020 .
  39. Selected Artists 2014. In: aliceprize.com. Accessed December 30, 2020 .
  40. Indigenous Australia: enduring civilization. The British Museum will open a major exhibition today presenting a history of Indigenous Australia. April 23, 2015, accessed January 3, 2021 .
  41. ^ John Fries Award 2015 Finalist Exhibition. In: johnfriesaward.com. Accessed December 30, 2020 .
  42. Kate Warren: TarraWarra Biennial 2016: Endless Circulation. In: caareviews.org. December 5, 2017, accessed December 30, 2020 .
  43. ^ Ramsay Art Prize 2017. Art Gallery of South Australia , accessed January 2, 2021 .
  44. The 'Telstra National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Awards' (NATSIAA) Finalists. In: art-almanac.com.au. July 18, 2018, accessed December 30, 2020 .
  45. Kieran Finnane: Breadth and depth in Alice Prize - show and winner. In: alicespringsnews.com. April 30, 2018, accessed December 30, 2020 .
  46. ^ A Lightness of Spirit is the Measure of Happiness. Australian Center for Contemporary Art, accessed January 3, 2021 .
  47. ^ Just not Australian. In: www.artspace.org.au. Retrieved January 2, 2021 .
  48. ^ A fresh look at Cook. Flinders University Art Museum, May 29, 2020, accessed December 30, 2020 .
  49. ^ Vincent Namatjira - British Museum. British Museum , accessed December 30, 2020 .
  50. Vincent Namatjira. Queensland Art Gallery , accessed December 30, 2020 .
  51. Vincent Namatjira. Artbank , accessed December 30, 2020 .