Barbara Weir
Barbara Weir | |
---|---|
Born | c. 1945 near Utopia, Northern Territory, Australia |
Died | 3 January 2023 |
Nationality | Australian |
Known for | Painting |
Movement | Contemporary Indigenous Australian art |
Barbara (originally Florrie)
Early life and education
Barbara Weir was born about 1945 at Bundey River Station, a cattle station in the Utopia region (called Urupunta in the local Aboriginal language) of the
Weir was partly raised by Pwerle's sister-in-law
Marriage and family
In Darwin, at age 18 and working as a maid, Weir married Mervyn Torres.[9] It was Torres who in 1963[9] or 1968,[7][10] when passing through Alice Springs, asked someone about Weir's mother; he discovered that Pwerle was alive and living at Utopia.[9] Mother and daughter were reunited but, although Weir regularly visited her family at Utopia, she did not form a close bond with her mother at first.[14] Weir and Torres had six children before they divorced in 1977.[7] She then moved permanently to Utopia with her mother and family.[14] As of 2000 she had thirteen grandchildren.[10][15][16]
Political career
Weir was active in the local
Artistic career
In midlife, Weir began to explore Aboriginal artistic traditions. She first painted in 1989 at the age of about 45. Five years later in 1994, she was one of a group of ten Utopia women who traveled to study
After Weir's mother Minnie Pwerle took up painting in 2000, she quickly became a successful artist.[1] Weir played a significant role in managing her mother's artistic career, including regularly preventing her from being "kidnapped" by people wanting the aging artist to paint for them.[1][8]
Major collections
- Art Gallery of South Australia[17]
- Artbank[17]
- Queensland Art Gallery[17]
- Hank Ebes Collection[17]
- AMP Collection[17]
Notes
- ^ Weir has self-identified as Aboriginal and is recognised by her community as such. The term has been used in the High Court of Australia to mean "a person of Aboriginal descent, albeit mixed, who identifies himself as such and who is recognised by the Aboriginal community as an Aboriginal ..."[3] This definition is widely accepted and has its origins in work of the Australian Department of Aboriginal Affairs in the 1980s.[4] Being Aboriginal or Indigenous has nothing to do with skin colour;[5] a key element is self-identification and Indigenous community recognition.[6]
References
- ^ a b c McCulloch, Susan (2005). "Late bloomer [Profile of artist Minnie Pwerle]". Australian Art Collector. 32 (Apr–Jun 2005): 84–88.
- ^ McCulloch, Susan (24 January 2023). "From stolen generations to international acclaim". SMH. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
- ^ Dean, J (1984) Tasmania v Commonwealth. 158 CLR. p. 243.
- ^ Gardiner-Garden, John (5 December 2000). "The Definition of Aboriginality". Department of the Parliamentary Library Research Note. 18. Archived from the original on 20 April 2010. Retrieved 2 June 2010.
- ^ "Who can identify as an Indigenous Australian person?". What Works: The Work Program. Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations. Archived from the original on 18 February 2011. Retrieved 1 June 2010.
- ^ "Who are indigenous peoples?" (PDF). Indigenous peoples, Indigenous voices: factsheet. United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 July 2008. Retrieved 1 June 2010.
- ^ a b c Usher, Robin (15 July 2004). "Joining dots on the way to Utopia". The Age. Retrieved 13 July 2010.
- ^ ISBN 0-522-85317-X.
- ^ a b c d e Fortescue, Elizabeth; Werner Obermeier (2008). Art of Utopia. Adelaide, SA: Boomerang Art. pp. 91–92.
- ^ a b c d Lacey, Stephen (18 November 2006). "Spirited away, but with a happy ending". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 13 July 2010.
- ^ Beck, Chris (18 February 2006). "The Pwerle Sisters". The Age. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
- ^ "Emily in Japan Part 1". Message Stick. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 26 July 2009. Archived from the original on 17 September 2010. Retrieved 13 July 2010.
- ^ a b
Read, Peter (1981). The Stolen Generations: The Removal of Aboriginal Children in New South Wales 1883 to 1969 (PDF). Department of Aboriginal Affairs (New South Wales government). ISBN 0-646-46221-0. Archived from the original(PDF) on 9 April 2012.
- ^ a b c Geissler, Marie (2006). "A recovered heritage". Craft Arts International. 66: 36–39.
- ^ ISBN 0-19-550649-9.
- ^ Fortescue, Elizabeth; Werner Obermeier (2008). Art of Utopia. Adelaide, SA: Boomerang Art. pp. 6–17.
- ^ ISBN 1-876622-47-4.
- ISBN 978-0-7347-6360-0.
External links
- Photographic portrait of Barbara Weir, standing with the Director of Osaka's National Museum of Art, at an exhibition of the work of her aunt, Emily Kngwarreye, 2008.
- Barbara Weir, My Mother's Country (1999), Art Gallery of South Australia.