
‘Skullcap’ honours Aboriginal servicemen – QAGOMA Blog
Shirley Macnamara lives outdoors Mt Isa in North West Queensland wherever she runs a flourishing cattle home with her son, and is also immersed in her family’s cultural and political exploration.
In 2013 Macnamara began to make skullcaps, reminiscent of a customary funerary apply for some Aboriginal women of all ages exactly where their heads have been plastered with white clay or burnt gypsum to variety a cap, covering their hair fully. The carrying of this cap could increase for some time just after a demise, with successive coatings generating it heavy and not comfortable for the widow or female relative of the deceased.
In Skullcap 2013 (illustrated), Macnamara doesn’t attempt to imitate the caps discovered in museum collections and illustrations, alternatively, she intends to honour Aboriginal men who represented Australia in two planet wars, in no way to return to their loved kinds. She hopes to be certain that Aboriginal soldiers are no more time overlooked. Skullcap is manufactured from wealthy, crimson ochre and is lined with emu feathers, which allude to people made use of to enhance Australian soldiers’ uniform hats (illustrated).
Shirley Macnamara ‘Skullcap’

Mild Horse slouch hat with emu plume

Acknowledgment of Country
The Queensland Artwork Gallery | Gallery of Modern-day Artwork acknowledges the Common Homeowners of the land on which the Gallery stands in Brisbane. We shell out respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elders past and existing and, in the spirit of reconciliation, acknowledge the immense innovative contribution Initial Australians make to the art and tradition of this place.
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Showcased graphic depth: Shirley Macnamara Skullcap 2013
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