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Benjamin Duterrau: The art of conciliation
Citation
Lehman, G, Benjamin Duterrau: The art of conciliation, Journal of War and Culture Studies, 8, (2) pp. 109-124. ISSN 1752-6272 (2015) [Refereed Article]
Copyright Statement
Copyright 2015 W.S. Maney & Sons Ltd.
DOI: doi:10.1179/1752627215Z.00000000066
Abstract
The Black War in Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania) sought the complete ‘extirpation’ of the island's Indigenous nations. It ended with an historic agreement authorized by Lieutenant-Governor George Arthur in 1831. Benjamin Duterrau's The Conciliation (1840), considered to be Australia's first epic history painting, commemorates this moment, providing what the Australian Museum of Democracy considers as one of Australia's Founding Images.
By examining details of the artist's life, and concurrent developments in the British Academy, this paper suggests new thematic influences on the painting, and significantly extends its implications for our understanding of a significant, but under-acknowledged period in Australian military history. I argue that Duterrau's painting must be considered as far more than an example of parallels between colonial sentiments in North America and Australia. The Conciliation is described as an allegorical tale of conciliation, deception, and tragic heroism; its roots in the art of the French Revolution and Milton's epic drama of Paradise Lost. The implications of this research demonstrate the ongoing need for critical reading of Australia's early visual history, to enable more complete understandings of the role that long-established European narratives have played in the foundation of relationships with colonized peoples.
Item Details
Item Type: | Refereed Article |
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Research Division: | Indigenous Studies |
Research Group: | Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture, language and history |
Research Field: | Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander history |
Objective Division: | Expanding Knowledge |
Objective Group: | Expanding knowledge |
Objective Field: | Expanding knowledge in history, heritage and archaeology |
UTAS Author: | Lehman, G (Dr Greg Lehman) |
ID Code: | 109272 |
Year Published: | 2015 |
Web of Science® Times Cited: | 1 |
Deposited By: | School of Humanities |
Deposited On: | 2016-06-06 |
Last Modified: | 2017-06-08 |
Downloads: | 0 |
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