Inquisitive child

Aunty Elaine Russell was central to the small group of Aboriginal artists who began capturing their experiences of growing up on missions in New South Wales in Sydney in the 1990s. Born in Tingha, New South Wales, Russell spent her early years in La Perouse before moving with her family to Murrin Bridge Mission on the Lachlan River near Lake Cargelligo. She began painting in 1993 while undertaking a course at the Eora Centre TAFE in Redfern. Russell drew on her own lived experiences and depicted stories from her childhood – daily routines and particular incidents. Her works bring attention to the struggles she experienced living on missions as well as the importance of family.

This work is a beautiful example of Russell’s painting detailing a family by the river with three homes in the top left corner. It is an idyllic scene that highlights the happier times within Russell’s childhood, although the houses perhaps indicate the ever-present control of mission managers over everyday life. Russell’s trademark trees and figures are nostalgic representations of her memories and important records of a time in our history we should never repeat but always remember. Russell’s works directly relate to those of Roy Kennedy, Ian Abdulla and Robert Campbell Jnr who all comment on mission life and childhood experiences of growing up on the edges of society.