Richard Bell
Richard Bell Pay the rent 2009, Art Gallery of New South Wales © Richard Bell, courtesy Milani Gallery, Brisbane
Pay the rent 2009
Kamilaroi, Kooma, Jiman and Goreng Goreng artist Richard Bell is recognised for his self-titled ‘liberation art’ which explores the many fronts of Australian racism. In line with his 2002 manifesto Bell’s theorem, Bell dwells on the commercial industries that have developed around Aboriginal art. He argues that Aboriginal art is a commodity slowly being subsumed by white Australia and white majorities around the globe, with its forms and subjects being used to further categorise and assimilate Aboriginal people.
In Pay the rent Bell reinvents a land-rights protest placard as a work of fine art, demanding that the Aboriginal population be paid all that would be owed in rent since the colonial invasion of 1788. The slogan was popular in 1972, when land rights protests in Canberra culminated into what became known as the Aboriginal Embassy. This act of protest is a continuing preoccupation of Bell’s, informing later works such as Embassy 2013–ongoing, which consists of a large military-style canvas tent surrounded by painted placards with slogans such as ‘White Invaders You Are Living on Stolen Land’ and ‘... We Wuz Robbed’.
-
K–6 questions
Look at the Richard Bell’s painting Pay the rent, then look at the different parts in detail. Describe the colours, shapes and patterns. What stands out to you? Imagine how Bell created the splatter effects in this painting. How did he move? Move in the same way you think he did.
The white words in this painting refer to signs carried in street marches or protests. Have you heard them before? What do they mean? Think about what it means to ‘pay rent’. When do people need to pay rent? Who is speaking these words and who are they directed to?
-
K–6 activities
Richard Bell creates art about ideas he cares deeply about. Think about an issue or idea that is important to you, one that you are comfortable to share. It may be something that affects you or your family or community. Use words and images to show other people how important this idea is to you. Make a drawing, painting or sculpture that communicates your ideas to others through colours, patterns and shapes. Think about what materials to use and whether your work will include words.
-
7–12 discussion questions
Describe the different painting styles you can see in Pay the rent. What are the different ways the artist has used to apply the paint?
Identify and discuss the design elements in the work, such as splatters, concentric circles and text. Can you name some of the sources they are appropriated from? How do they engage with the idea of Aboriginal self-determination?
-
7–12 activities
Bell describes himself as an ‘activist masquerading as an artist’. Discuss what he might mean by this. How can art play an effective role in political activism? The phrase ‘pay the rent’ has a history in Australia in the land rights movement. It demands that the colonisers of Australia recognise the ownership rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to land they have cared for and occupied for thousands of years.
Research the land rights movement in Australia and discuss in class. Consider the role that artists and artworks such as the Yirrkala bark petitions 1963, the Barunga Statement 1988 and the Ngurrara I canvas 1997 have played in seeking land rights. Create a timeline of the land rights movement in Australian history. Discuss the role played by art in achieving Indigenous self-determination. Create an artwork which expresses the ways in which you belong to a particular place. What will help you communicate this to viewers?
Consider the use of text in Pay the rent and its role in communicating the artist’s ideas. Look at the word-play Bell uses to create powerful political messages in other works Pigeonholed 1992 and Devine inspiration 1993. Investigate how he uses English, the colonising language, to challenge racism and class barriers. Research the history of political engagement by Indigenous artists, including the proppaNOW artist collective.