Disruptive, persistent, inventive exhibition by NAA
Image: Love Wheels, 2017, bicycle decorated with rainbow crochet, sequins, embroidery and photographs, by Eloise Murphy aka Treble Maker. Image: National Museum of Australia
The National Archives of Australia in Canberra is holding an exciting new exhibition called Disrupt, persist, invent: Australians in an ever-changing world which “profiles the many different and sometimes unexpected ways people have pushed for change in Australia”.
Exhibition curator Ms Catriona Donnelly says, “The catalyst for social change might arise from a significant event or as a result of likeminded people campaigning for a common cause. They are passionate, determined and often prepared to put their bodies on the line to achieve their objectives”.
“The exhibition is arranged not by the cause or campaign, but by how the change was effected. This could be through noisy protests or by quiet persistence. Themes, such as women’s rights, environmental campaigns, First Nations rights and equality, run as undercurrents, however the focus is on how the change was achieved.”
One example given by Donnelly is that of “craftivist” Eloise Murphy, who decided to bypass the politicisation of the same-sex marriage debate by creating a crocheted rainbow bike called “Love wheels” and chaining it to a street pole outside then Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s house.
The Turnbulls saw it and loved it! And the bike became a powerful symbol for the “Yes” vote.
Other examples include the long-running Aboriginal Tent Embassy on the lawns of Parliament House and a 1984 anti-nuclear rally in Melbourne.
Until June 12, 2023
National Archives of Australia, National Office, Kings Avenue, Parkes ACT
www.naa.gov.au
