Black Anzac

Black Anzac is part of a series of works paying tribute to Aboriginal servicemen in WW1, by artist Hego.[1] This work portrays Alfred Cameron Jr, of the 1st Light Horse Brigade.[2]

Hego has explained that his inspiration for the work came from the poem “Black Anzac” by Cecil Fisher. Speaking about his work, Hego has said that his work is about "Not just perpetuating the cult of the Anzac legend, but more their [Aboriginal people’s] unique personal experiences, volunteering to fight for a country that was so blatantly racist and discriminatory to their population."[3]

"I've come across stories of many Aboriginals being let off in Sydney and having to pay their own way back to their hometown. A soldier, George Karpany, was recommended for a Victoria Cross for bravery by his Australian officer, only to be knocked back by the British higher ups because he was Aboriginal. I came across the story of another soldier called Arthur Walker, whose family has since called one male from each subsequent generation ‘Anzac’ to honour his contribution fighting for Australia while not being allowed to have a beer with his mates on Anzac Day because of the colour of his skin.”

"These are just some of the stories from the handful of soldiers I've recognised in the mural. My goal with my murals is to start a conversation amongst Australians about how we choose to recognise Aboriginal Australian experiences, not only in WWI but across all of modern Australia’s history."[4]

[1] Guillaume, J. (2015) This artist Is Raising Awareness Of Indigenous Anzacs Through Art.

[2] Information taken from the image above.

[3] Hego.

[4] Ibid.