You don’t have to look far around Berowra or most parts of Hornsby Shire to see rock engravings, middens and other evidence of ancient Aboriginal habitation. Sometimes, however, it’s hard to see the locally-resident descendants of indigenous people – either because of their own ignorance about their ancestry or because of their denial of it, both of which are legacies of Australia’s sometimes brutal, sometimes well-intentioned, but nearly always hurtful treatment of Aborigines in the past. Hornsby Council recently produced three videos focusing on local residents of Aboriginal descent. In this one Les Bimson, a descendant of the Guringai, talks about his rediscovery of his Aboriginal identity and connections with the land.
It’s a beautiful late autumn day here in the best suburb on earth, and it’s a Sunday, so there’s time (a little, at least) to appreciate the moment. Rather than try to capture it in my own inadequate words, I post here a locally-themed work by great Australian modernist artist Margaret Preston who lived here for a while from 1936. It’s called ‘I Lived at Berowra’ and belongs to the Art Gallery of NSW. Credits and link below. Enjoy your weekend!
© Margaret Rose Preston Estate
Notes from the Art Gallery of NSW web page: “In 1936, Margaret Preston moved with her husband to a new home at Berowra to live in a house surrounded by bushland a couple of kilometres from the Hawkesbury River, north of Sydney. ‘I lived at Berowra’ is among a number of works, including ‘The brown pot’ and ‘Grey day in the ranges’ that were painted within a three year period. They are characterized by a simplification of form, flattened perspectives and a reduced palette of earth-toned colours reminiscent of natural ochres found in the landscape, a visual expression of Preston’s increasing interest in Aboriginal art.”
© Australian Art Department, Art Gallery of New South Wales, 2000