Circus Waters massacre memento mori
Kristabell PORTER: artist
Kristabell took a series of photographs in 2016 which looked at the practice of memento mori, and representing this idea in a modern Ngaanyatjarra way. In 2017, she has extended that idea even further and begun staging photographs in significant places. This image deals with the complex and tragic story of the Circus Waters Massacre, where people local to the area of Warakurna lost their lives in a bloody fight with white explorers over the loss of one of the explorers' camels. Kristabell has referenced the camel as well as indicating how the explorers partied after the massacre, sitting around drinking their liquor, getting drunk as the local Aboriginal people mourned their losses. This history has been well documented by the late Mr Ian Newberry (dec), a direct descendant of a Circus Waters Massacre survivor. This is Kristabell's memorial to the people who lost their lives and a reminder of these unwritten dark histories.
Title
Circus Waters massacre memento mori
Artist/Maker and role
Kristabell PORTER: artist
Date
2017
Medium
digital print
Measurements
60.0 x 80.0 cm (framed)
Credit line
Purchased through The Art Gallery of Western Australia Foundation: COVID-19 Arts Stimulus Package, 2020
© Kristabell Porter / Copyright Agency Ltd
The State Art Collection, The Art Gallery of Western Australia
Accession number
2020/0402