Faaarrkk
2019
Medium
wool, cotton and felt on printed cotton
Measurements
74.8 × 45.7 cm
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Purchased, Victorian Foundation for Living Australian Artists, 2020
© Kait James
Gallery location
Gallery 1
Ground Level, NGV Australia
About this work
This vintage tea towel from 1979 features a calendar surrounded by animals and weapons. Kait James modifies the tea towel by adding embroidered imagery, including a horrified-looking golliwog and a big black crow with a speech bubble exclaiming: ‘FAAARRKK.’ A series of hands in varying colours reach up from the bottom of the work to surround the Aboriginal flag in solidarity, and at the top of the work a brightly coloured snake connects elements within the tea towel’s original illustration. Faaarrk conveys themes of inclusion and acknowledgement to show shifting attitudes towards and representations of Aboriginal people in the mainstream.
Artwork Details
Place/s of Execution
Melbourne, Victoria
Inscription
stitched in green wool l.r.: KJ
Accession Number
2020.165
Department
First Nations Australia