Oodgeroo Noonuccal (1920–1993), formerly Kath Walker, was a Quandamooka woman, activist, poet, writer and educator. Born in Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island) in Queensland, she enlisted in the Australian Women's Army Service in 1942 before beginning her career in political activism. In the 1940s she was a member of the Communist Party of Australia, which opposed racial discrimination. She became Queensland State Secretary of the Federal Council for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advancement in 1961, and campaigned successfully for amendments to Sections 51(xxvi) and 127 of the Constitution in 1967. In the 1970s she chaired a number of bodies set up to promote Indigenous interests, including the Queensland Aboriginal Advancement League. Throughout her life, she aimed to promote cultural pride among Aboriginal people through her writing, which she described as 'sloganistic, civil rightish, plain and simple'. Her first book of poetry, We are Going, published in 1964, was the first poetry publication by an Aboriginal person. Noonuccal returned to Minjerribah in 1971 where she taught Aboriginal culture to thousands of school children, and published two children's books: Stradbroke Dreamtime (1972) and Father Sky and Mother Earth (1981). Having gained world acclaim for her writing and advocacy (for which she was also conferred with four honorary doctorates), she published her last collection of poems, Kath Walker in China, in 1988. That year, she reassumed her tribal name in protest at the Bicentennial celebrations, and returned the MBE she had been awarded in 1970.
Clif Peir (1905–1985) was a Sydney painter and teacher, who studied at the Julian Ashton School under Ashton. He was President of the Australian Art Society in 1951, and later a member of the Royal Art Society of NSW and the St George Art Society. From 1950 onward he travelled extensively in Central Australia, and throughout the 1960s he painted views of desert landscapes and Aboriginal people. In the early 1960s he taught art at evening classes at Sutherland School, and also worked sporadically as an art critic for the Mirror newspaper group and a broadcaster for the BBC. He held many solo and group shows in Sydney from 1950 onward, though his principal employment was producing advertising material for the Sydney County Council. In 1970 Peir’s work was featured in an ‘Art Sale for Land Rights’ at Paddington Town Hall with proceeds going to the New South Wales, Kimberley and North Queensland Aboriginal Land Councils. Kath Walker stayed with the Peir family in Oatley while this portrait was being painted.
Gift of Richard Brian Close, Githabul people, Woodenbong 2000. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.
© Estate of Clif Peir
This is a portrait of portrait of Quandamooka woman Oodgeroo Noonuccal, formerly known as Kath Walker, created by Clif Peir in 1965. Oodgerooo was an activist, poet, writer and educator.
The portrait is a framed oil painting on board, measuring 104 cm high and 83.7 cm wide with the frame having a depth of 5.1 cm.
Oodgeroo is a slim middle-aged woman, seated angled to the left against a dramatic and moody background. Behind her, dark greens merge into black. Highlights of emerald green flicker across the sky and a brighter lime green surrounds her head. Flecks of white suggest distant stars beyond this green-tinted atmosphere.
Two sharp craggy hills in deep shadow appear in the lower third, to the left of the subject. In front of them a spindly leafless tree reaches its fine black branches into the sky.
In the foreground, Oodgeroo sits in a straight-backed chair upholstered in soft turquoise cloth. Her face is framed by black curly hair cut just below her ears. Her skin is a deep rich brown. Soft light filters down from the upper left, creating a gentle sheen of lighter brown across her brow, cheeks, the tip of her nose and chin.
Her large dark eyes, framed by strong black brows, gaze out to her upper left. The play of light also emphasises her prominent cheek bones, straight nose and full closed lips.
Her neck is long and slim, with the muscles on either side of her jaw standing out, stretching down to her exposed clavicle.
Oodgeroo wears a simple round-necked white blouse underneath an elegant formal cerulean blue jacket with white edging on collar and sleeves, with a matching tailored straight skirt. The portrait ends just above her knees.
Her hands lie on an open book in her lap, right hand over left. The pages, sepia flecked with white, are empty.
Her relaxed pose and distant gaze give a sense of thoughtful introspection.
Audio description written by Krysia Kitch and voiced by Amy Midddleby
On one level The Companion talks about the most famous and frontline Australians, but on another it tells us about ourselves.
Archie 100 curator (and detective) Natalie Wilson’s nationwide search for Archibald portraits unearthed the fascinating stories behind some long-lost treasures.
Krysia Kitch celebrates Oodgeroo Noonuccal.
