Stolen Generations
These children were raised in non-Aboriginal institutions and families, and were forced to adopt new cultural values and ways of life. Many were physically, emotionally or sexually abused. Many never saw their families again.
In addition to losing their connection to country and family, as well as their culture and identity, these children were traumatised by their experiences. Many took to drinking alcohol as a means of coping with this trauma. Nearly every Aboriginal family in Australia was affected by these government policies.
Carrolup Native Settlement
The Child Artists and Their Art
The children's art became widely acclaimed after an exhibition in Boans store in Perth in 1947. Four of the boys sketched to a live audience.
An elderly English lady, Mrs Florence Rutter, visited Carrolup in 1949 and 1950 and was so impressed that she bought over 100 artworks. She showed these artworks around Australia and New Zealand, and later arranged exhibitions in the UK and Holland. They created a sensation in the press and attracted critical acclaim.
A rivalry arose between the Department of Education, who showed great pride in the children's art and tried to help the children further, and the Department of Native Affairs. The latter department saw no value of the art for helping the children's future. They closed Carrolup at the end of the 1950 school year.
Later, Mrs Rutter fell on hard times financially and sold her Carrolup artworks to American television magnate Herbert Mayer who, in turn, gifted the collection to Colgate University in upstate New York. They remained there in obscurity for decades.
In 2004, a chance discovery of the Carrolup artwork by visiting Australian academic Howard Morphy set the wheels in motion for their repatriation to Australia. Colgate University eventually made the decision to return the paintings to Noongar country.
Colgate University transferred the collection to John Curtin Gallery in Perth in May 2013. The collection is known as The Herbert Mayer Collection of Carrolup Artworks.