The Exhibition, A Century of Australian War Art, is presented to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the ANZAC campaign at Gallipoli. I attended the exhibition at the Australian Embassy in Washington DC, which commissioned and developed the show in partnership with the Australian War Memorial in Canberra.
“For almost one hundred years, art has been central to the way we understand and commemorate the Australian experience of war. The official art war scheme dates back to December 1916, when the artist Will Dyson volunteered with the Australian Imperial Force and travelled to the Western Front. Dyson’s intent was not to fight but rather to visually record the experiences of Australian soldiers ……Since Will Dyson, more than 70 official war artists have been deployed to major conflicts in which Australia has participated, including both world wars, the Korean and Vietnam wars, and more recently in Iraq and Afghanistan. Official commissions have also been undertaken amid peacekeeping operations in East Timor and the Solomon Islands, and during recruitment programs at the NORFORCE unit in far north Australia.” ( exhibition catalogue notes, Australian War Memorial, 2015)
Jon Cattapan is a Melbourne based artist whose works deal primarily with political and social representations of the urban environment.
Research his work by the title Night Vision XV. Where was he when he made this painting?
Given the title of this work and the colour scheme featured, what form of combat technology is being referenced?
What are being referenced by the red marks?
Post your comments and will feedback ,
regards Dr Mackey at the Smithsonian.