Ebony and Ivory – 2026

Collage comprising cardboard cut out, a pre designed optical wheel, an ivory piano key from a derelict antique nineteenth century pianoforte. H32 x W32 cm

This image addresses a delicate subject in an Australian art context. The prevailing and divisive seperation of art in Australia, into “Aboriginal Art” and “Mainstream Art”, has maintained our visual arts in a state of abject paucity, in that there is no acceptable fusion of disparate cultures. Aboriginal artists vociferously claim a monopoly on what is termed their traditional mark-making i.e. patterns derived from Aboriginal culture handed down through the ages. While all agree that Aboriginal culture on every terrain has been under constant threat since the White Invasion in 1788, it is surely time to establish a unique Australian way of making art that is universal