Words Are Not Enough

FINALIST - Kennedy Art Prize 2022

Between 1910 and the 1970s around 1 in 3 Indigenous children were forcibly removed from their families and communities, affecting most Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in Australia. This all took place under past Australian Government policies.

Stolen Generations survivors individually have their own painful lived experiences of removal, however they also collectively share trauma from effects like living in institutions, being placed in non-Indigenous homes and being trained to be domestic servants and stockmen for unpaid labour.

Children were forced to assimilate into non-Indigenous society and culture. They were refused access to their family and were stopped from speaking their native language and using their birth name. The government didn’t keep records of birth dates or place of birth of many of the children. This made it extremely difficult for them to reconnect with their biological families when they were older. In many cases children were removed and housed far away from where they were stolen.

‘Sorry’ is such an inadequate response to such an incomprehensible crime.

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CONTEMPORARY AUSTRALIAN ARTIST

Sharon is a visual artist from Sydney, best known for her stylised paintings of Australian Goddesses immersed in nature. Sharon grew up in suburban Sydney then travelled the world extensively where she developed a love of tribal markings and jewellery. Body decoration and self expression feature largely in her work. She returned to Australia to launch her magazine publishing business and later ran her own graphic design studio in North Sydney for 15 years. Sharon now works full-time as an artist from her studio in inner city Sydney.

Sharon's work has been bought by collectors in Australia, Canada, South Africa, Spain, England, France, Scotland, Qatar, The Netherlands, USA, Germany and Taiwan.