Invasion of the ‘Australia Felix’- Making the invisible visible.
My work continues to explore the meta-narrative of Colonial invasion, and to deconstruct the denial of our colonial past. My ‘visual narrative’ derived through diverse research, explores Dja Dja Wurrung culture, environment, and history, acknowledging and reimagining Indigenous presence, lifeways, and the effects of ‘colonisation’, prior to the discovery of gold.
My work focuses on connecting descriptions and images of cultural material and landscapes, to gain insights into the astounding abundance of pre colonial times, with a focus on environmental change, and its relevance to the Murray Darling Basin.
My aim is to revisit early contact times, prior to gold, to reveal the extraordinary cultural landscapes and practices of First Nations, particularly the Dja Dja Wurrung. I utilise text, maps and paintings to revisit this tumultuous time and explore it through visual narrative, text and paintings.
I also explore many themes from the Dark Emu Debate questioning whether Indigenous culture was purely nomadic or is indeed a combination of farming, aquatic and hunter-gather lifestyle developed over the 60,000-year history. I expand upon ideas and documents concealed in the annals of history, to shed light on this under-represented era of colonial invasion and occupation.
Driven by a relentless commitment to cultural and ecological justice, my research and paintings expand on the theme of life in central Victoria prior to colonial settlement, revealing the unprecedented pastoral invasion, indigenous dispossession, environmental degradation, and cultural change leading up to the gold rushes.
Eliza Tree: Artist and Expeditioner
Freelance practicing Artist and Environmentalist living in Castlemaine, Victoria.
I combine academic research with my passion for history, ecology, Indigenous studies and art in a multi-disciplinary way.