|
July 29, 2010
The exhibition archives of Stills Gallery features the work of Michael Riley--his flyblown series of 1998, which appropriated Christian iconography to express his 'creepy' religious experiences.
Michael Riley, Untitled, from the series flyblown (bible), 1998 Flyblown series bible 1998
He was an indigenous photographer and filmmaker who moved moved easily between working as a creator of stills and moving imagery. flyblown closely echoed the imagery in the short film Empire and it represents the ‘sacrifices Aboriginal people made to be Christian’ --the ‘loss’ of culture and land in enforced, and sometimes embraced, ‘exchange’ for Christianity.
Michael RILEY Untitled, from the series flyblown (water), 1998
Michael Riley (1960-2004) was one of the most important contemporary Indigenous visual artists of the past two decades and his contribution to the urban-based Indigenous visual arts industry was substantial.
|
