Brian Robinson

Cover image: Midas touch II 2011, linocut printed in black ink from one block, edition of 30, image size 350 x 1100 mm, editioning printer: Hannah Parker.

This catalogue commemorates the career development of Brian Robinson and the major body of work created by the artist for his solo exhibition men + GODS. This catalogue has been supported by the Queensland Government through the Indigenous Arts Marketing and Export Agency (QIAMEA), Arts Queensland. QIAMEA promotes Queensland Indigenous arts through marketing and export activity.

KickArts Contemporary Arts is a not for profit company limited by guarantee. KickArts acknowledges the assistance of the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland. KickArts is supported by the Visual Arts and Craft Strategy, an initiative of the Australian, State and Territory Governments.

The Queensland Government is the foundation partner of Djumbunji Press through its Backing Indigenous Arts program. Djumbunji Press is generously supported by James Cook University.

Sponsors and Partners:Arts Queensland QIAMEAJames Cook UniversitySegue ArtBlack & More

Publisher:KickArts Contemporary Arts96 Abbott Street Cairns QLD 4870 AustraliaPostal address: PO Box 6090 Cairns QLD 4870 Australiawww.kickarts.org.auTelephone: 07 4050 9494 International telephone +61 7 4050 9494administration@kickarts.org.au

Published in association with the exhibition Brian Robinson: men + GODS held at KickArts August to September 2012 and thereafter toured. Language and Spelling:Where possible this publication uses the language names provided by the artist. The spelling of Indigenous works and names varies. They generally appear in this publication according to conventions of accepted usage and authoritative sources.

Many people of Torres Strait Islander descent prefer to use the term Zenadh Kes to describe the geographic region of the Torres Strait and the Torres Strait Islander culture and peoples. Both terms appear throughout this publication.

All prints are published by Djumbunji Press KickArts Fine Art Printmaking, unless otherwise stated.

Artwork dimensions are given in millimetres (mm), height preceding width, preceding depth.

Publication team:Artist: Brian RobinsonEditor: Beverley Mitchell Exhibition Curator: Kylie Burke Writers and contributors: Russell Milledge, Beverley Mitchell, Brian Robinson, Sally Donald, Amanda BlackDesign and production: Andrew Weatherill, Studio Qwerty Design & Publishing www.studioqwerty.com.auPhotography: as creditedPrinted through Cover-2-Cover Print Management Pty LtdPrinted in China

© KickArts Contemporary Arts Ltd 2012

Copyright KickArts Contemporary Arts, the artist, the photographers and authors 2012. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced without prior written permission from the publisher. No illustration in this publication may be reproduced without the permission of the copyright owners. Neither may information be stored electronically in any form whatsoever without such permission. Requests and enquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to the publisher. The views expressed are not necessarily those of the publisher.

National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry

Robinson, Brian, 1973- Brian Robinson: men + GODS / editor, Beverley Mitchell.

ISBN: 9780980340266 (hbk.)

Writers and contributors: Russell Milledge, Beverley Mitchell, Brian Robinson, Sally Donald, Amanda Black.

Robinson, Brian, 1973- Artists--Australia--Biography Art--Queensland--Exhibitions. Arts, Australian--Queensland, North--Exhibitions. Arts, Aboriginal Australian--Queensland, North--Exhibitions.

Mitchell, Beverley. KickArts Contemporary Arts.

709.209943

School ofCreative Arts

q w E r t y

i i i

foreword v

exhibition statement vii

introduction 1

i would eat art if i could An interview with Brian Robinson by Sally Donald and Amanda Black 7

the contemporary traditionalist Media and themes in the work of Brian Robinson by Beverley Mitchell 21

the new Melanesian art of Brian Robinson by Russell Milledge 55

bibliography 82

artist’s cv 86

contents

v

foreword

men + GODS is a milestone exhibition in my artistic career – marking the start

of an amazing journey of self-discovery, experimentation and a lot of art. Like

the narratives they represent, the works of art that constitute this exhibition

take the viewer on a visual journey through a mythological realm, where

contemporary Torres Strait culture is interwoven with classical Greek mythology,

combined with the biblical traits of the Renaissance.

This exhibition and the works that it encompasses have taken time to develop, to

conjure, to manifest. The creation of a cohesive visual dialogue between all the

works of art, both on paper and sculpturally, has taken years, even decades, to

form. With this has come patience, dedication and understanding … my sanity

may have suffered a little, though! In my experience, creativity must be nurtured

through thought, practice, interaction with others, experimentation with new

materials and skills, and dreams. It is also nurtured through close ties to history,

culture, family and friends. It can be a personal journey or a shared experience.

I would like to dedicate this publication and exhibition to my loving wife, Tanya.

Without her tireless support over the years none of this would have been

possible. And to my daughter, Amber, and sons, Raidon and Leonardo:

Brian Robinson in his home studio 2012 Photographer: Michael Marzik

vi

men + GODS

the support, humour, and mountains of toys and other visual

paraphernalia they provide are the foundation for my artistic life.

The boundless energy and curiosity they possess is often mirrored

and intertwoven throughout the works of art that I create. I am truly

grateful and indebted to my family for the opportunity to embark on

a full-time arts practice that they have provided me with. I would also

like to thank the Board and staff of KickArts and Djumbunji Press for

the commitment and faith in my artistic practice they have shown me

over the years since relocating from Thursday Island.

Big dreams are essential for nurturing creativity. When I am tentative,

when I rely too much on the opinions of others, when I don’t imagine

greatness, I am wasteful of my skills and talents. I still find it difficult to say

my dreams out loud, but each time I gather my courage to actually name

my longings I find that it is easier to make my dreams come true.

Brian Robinson | triebSTUDIOApril 2012

vi i

exhibition statement

Mythological tales exploring the origins of landforms and all manner of natural

phenomena and magic are present throughout all cultures across the globe.

Stories of heroic figures, magical powers, great and ferocious beasts, and the

realms that the ancestors and gods occupy are told and retold, time and time

again, handed down through countless generations by word of mouth ‘til

present day. men + GODS is one of those tales.

Long before the white man came to the islands, the Islanders were the Vikings

of the Torres Strait. A sea-going race, proud and dignified, whose spirituality was

derived from ancestral ties to land, sea and sky. Connected to the spirit world

through ceremonial masks, these magically-charged objects were the bolts of

lightning through which otherworldly spirits and the ancestors could interact

with and influence the human world. This labyrinth was ventured into only by

the initiated few … those who could speak with the Gods.

Imbued with the customs, traditions and mythology of Torres Strait Islander

people, past, present and future, men + GODS is intertwined with the same epic

qualities contained in the sagas of the Norse Seamen, and the wanderings of

Ulysses paired with the heroism of Achilles.

Opposite:He ascended from the heavens with a plank of text 2012Linocut printed in black ink from one blockState proof Image size: 1200 x 395 mmEditioning printer: Hannah Parker, Elizabeth HunterPhotographer: Kerry Trapnell

vi i i

Dinghies on WaibenPhotographer: Kerry Trapnell

Lino blocks in Robinson’s studio, Cairns 2012Photographer: Michael Marzik

1

introduction

Brian Robinson was born in 1973 and raised on Waiben (Thursday Island) in the Torres Strait and the Atherton

Tablelands near Cairns. Robinson was the third of four children to parents Russell and Yvonne Robinson (née

Drummond) and his recollections of his childhood are of a series of family homes, with his grandfather Ali

Drummond’s home on Waiben an embodiment of the sea-focused life of the Islanders. Drummond fished every day and

his house and yard were adorned with a collection of dinghies, floats, nets, turtle shells, feral deer antlers, pearls and pearl

shells, and other found objects from the sea and shore.

Drummond, like many Islanders, was deeply religious and the family were practising Roman Catholics. On Waiben

alone one finds the Catholic Church, the Church of England, Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, evangelical full-gospel

congregations and followers of the Bahá’í faith, amongst others, with houses of worship a visible presence along the

main street of the island. These imported beliefs mesh and merge with traditional spiritual beliefs and practices.

1

2

A young Robinson would accompany his mother and grandfather to Mass on

Sundays and, like most young boys, he was unenthusiastic about this weekly

ritual, that is, until he noticed the classically-inspired artwork in the church.

Once his curiosity and imagination had been sparked Robinson happily

accompanied his family and would sit and study the paintings, icons and

sculptures, until by late primary-school age he could recite the entire Mass,

albeit in silence, having absorbed it subconsciously.

Pursuing this interest in classical Western art, Robinson began to study the

works of the Old Masters, using the centuries-old technique of copying their

works in an effort to understand and master their creative processes. A naturally

gifted and accomplished draftsman, Robinson now also extends this method

to include study of the symbolic and thematic concerns of the Masters –

combining classical and universally-recognised themes with the symbology,

patterning and stories specific to the Torres Strait Islander, or Zenadh Kes, culture.

3

Robinson acknowledges that Zenadh Kes culture is adept at incorporating

other cultural influences, this flexibility arguably allowing some elements to

survive colonisation and the influx of missionaries so well. As a sea-based

culture with a long history of contact with traders or kin from Papua New

Guinea, the Australian mainland, Melanesia and South-east Asia, this interface

was expanded with the arrival of European explorers. The explorers were

followed in turn by British missionaries, who utilised South Sea Islander

converts to evangelise in the Straits. Missionaries worked cheek by jowl with

Japanese, Malay and Indian pearlers, who added yet another layer of cultural

influence and genetic material. One of Robinson’s maternal great grandfathers

was from Sarawak, in modern-day Malaysia, and Ali Drummond recalled

his father in Islamic prayer in the family home throughout his childhood on

Waiben. Robinson’s etching ... And suddenly the mighty dragon appeared 2011

celebrates this important ancestral influence.

Dinghy blo Ali 2010Linocut printed in black ink from one blockEdition of 30Image size: 300 x 1000 mm Editioning printer: Carolyn Craig Photographer: David Campbell

Opposite: Floats at John Turner’s residence, Thursday IslandPhotographer: Brian Robinson

4

... And suddenly the mighty dragon appeared 2011Etching printed in two colours from one plateEdition of 30Image size: 295 x 495 mm Collaborative printer: Elizabeth HunterEditioning printer: Elizabeth Hunter, Taicee PearsonPhotographer: Kerry Trapnell

Robinson as an artist is similarly adept at borrowing and absorbing

contemporary cultural and other external influences into his work. Not only

do the profoundly influential memes of classical Western art appear, but

so too do explorers’ ethnographical drawings, and street art, graphic novel

and pop cultural references. Robinson defines himself as an artist first and

foremost; as an individual motivated by the pure urge to create. His identity

as an Indigenous artist is ancillary to this, shaping his personal identity and

the themes of his work, but not acting as the driving force of his creativity.

Robinson holds a unique position amongst his peers in that he is also a curator

of near 15 years standing. When questioned he muses that his experience as

a curator has influenced his artistic practice, as he has long begun his creative

process by picturing a work of art in its finished form in the gallery. He then

mentally tracks backwards to break the work down into components for

working drawings and then problem solves the construction or resolution

of the work to produce the final result. Each work, whether it be a linocut, a

wall-mounted piece or a public artwork, is initially documented as a drawing,

a career-long practice as early sketches from his time studying at TNQITAFE,

Cairns, attest.

introduct ion

5

In September 2010 Robinson made a bold career move and resigned from his

long-term position at the Cairns Regional Gallery to undertake a 12-month

residency at the Djumbunji Press KickArts Fine Art Printmaking studio.

Robinson undertook this creative sabbatical to focus on his artistic practice

full-time, working on developing new skills and works in printmaking in the

Djumbunji Press studio, and fulfilling commissions for public art projects and

sculptural pieces for the Queensland Art Gallery/Gallery of Modern Art (QAG/

GoMA) landmark exhibition Land, Sea and Sky: Contemporary Art of the Torres

Strait Islands from his home studio. His output in this period was prolific, he

developed over 85 plates and blocks in intaglio and relief techniques, 26 of

them published in 2011. Robinson’s objective was to develop the body of work

that has become men + GODS, with almost all works created or conceived in

this time. He also produced the mixed-media work Up in the heavens the gods

contemplate their next move … 2011, which featured in Land, Sea and Sky and is

now held in the Collection of QAG/GoMA. Originally conceived for the Gallery

1 Void space at KickArts Contemporary Arts, Cairns, this ceiling-mounted work

encapsulates the artist’s hybrid themes and aesthetics and his enthusiasm for

blurring the boundaries of fine art printmaking and sculpture. Up in the heavens

Puri-puri concept sketch 1995Graphite pencil on paperDimensions: 230 x 341 mmImage courtesy of the artist

Puri-puri 1995Linocut printed in black ink from one blockEdition of 15Image size: 380 x 560 mmEditioning printer: Brian RobinsonPublished by the artistPhotographer: Brian Robinson

6

men + GODS

Waiben (Thursday Island) looking south-east to Ngurupai (Horn Island) and Murulag (Prince of Wales Island)Photographer: Kerry Trapnell

the gods contemplate their next move … II 2012, featured in men + GODS, differs

significantly from the 2011 work, but follows Robinson’s tradition of reworking a

theme, and even a title, through several incarnations.

men + GODS is a powerful exhibition, challenging perceived notions and

aesthetics of Indigenous Australian art. Robinson, with the benefit of both

the artistic and curatorial eye, has conceived and developed a cohesive body

of work. The artist collaborated with printmakers Dian Darmansjah, Carolyn

Craig and, most particularly, Elizabeth Hunter in the development of the fine

art prints, and worked in close association with KickArts Curator Kylie Burke

to realise the final exhibition. This publication seeks not only to support the

exhibition, but also to document Robinson’s career to date, to illustrate the

steps the artist has taken to arrive at this extraordinary body of work. As the

artist approaches his 40th year this is a timely distillation of a considered and

gifted career. men + GODS provides reference points for an audience of all

cultural backgrounds to contemplate both our individual place in the cosmos

and the position, treatment and contribution of minority cultures, such as that

of the Torres Strait Islanders, within the greater universality of globalisation.