Maree Clarke

Inquiry questions

  • Take your time to look at the artworks. What materials do you think they are made from? 
  • What do you find most interesting about the artworks? Why? 

Introduction

Maree Clarke is a Yorta Yorta, Wamba Wamba, Mutti Mutti and Boonwurrung woman. Her practice is based on researching, teaching, collaboration and using materials in innovative ways. An important aspect of her art practice is bringing her family together to connect with Country and culture.   

“I love learning these processes that haven't been made for a long long time and passing that on to the next generation." (Maree Clarke – Thung-ung Coorang (Kangaroo teeth necklace), 2018 

Clarke researches museum collections in Australia and around the world to support the repatriation of sacred objects and skeletal remains. Repatriation is the process of returning objects, materials or human remains to the place they were taken from without permission. In Australia, repatriation is part of the  process of decolonisation and entails returning remains and objects taken from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nations to the Country from which they were taken. 

Nine of Clarke’s artworks are in The National 2021: New Australian Art. They are made of materials such as kangaroo teeth, kangaroo sinew, feathers, echidna quills and leather, as well as recreated versions made from glass to depict the loss of land, language and cultural practices. These artworks tell the story of reviving cultural practices and reclaiming knowledge. Some of Clarke’s artworks are necklaces that are 10 to 40 metres long. The supersized scale reflects the enormous loss of knowledge and cultural practices due to colonisation.

Creative learning activity

You will need:

  • 3 sheets of paper (per person)
  • A ruler
  • A calculator

Process

  1. Take a moment to think of everyday objects that you and your family or friends share. 
  2. On a piece of paper, spend 5 minutes making line drawings of these objects. Don’t worry too much about their placement or about making the drawings perfect.  
  3. Consider the objects you’ve drawn. Which ones are important to your family or friends? Which ones are not? Which objects are significant (that is, not just important but meaningful) to you and your family or friends? Which objects tell a story about your family or friends? Which ones do not? 
  4. Redraw the objects at different scales according to their significance. For example, you could increase the size of objects that are significant to you and decrease the size objects that are not as significant. A really significant object could be magnified by a scale of 5:1, while a less significant object could be minimised by 0.5:1. Use your calculator and ruler to make notes about how long the new drawings will be. 
  5. On a new sheet of paper, redraw the objects according to their new scales.  
  6. Share your original drawings with a partner. Without sharing your re-scaled drawings, ask them to choose one object to redraw magnified and one object to redraw minimised.  
  7. After they’ve drawn the two objects, have a conversation with them about why they chose those particular objects and their decision about the scales. Talk about how you felt having those objects chosen and seeing them redrawn. 

Extension

  • Extension option 1: view and research other artworks in The National 2021: New Australian Art through the lens of scale, size and number. How does your interpretation of the work change through a focus on scale? 
  • Extension option 2: Create some of your significant objects with their new sizes using modelling clay. 

Reflection

  • How did you decide which objects were important or less important for you and your family? For example, was it based on how often you use them, how much they cost, or the memories you associate with the object? Has anything changed in your understanding of these objects or their associated stories? 
  • Compare your 2 sets of drawings. How does the change in scale affect the story behind the objects? 
  • What did it feel like to have someone else decide about the significance or insignificance of your family’s shared objects?  
  • What do you think museum curators consider when they decide where and how to place objects in an exhibition? What might they choose to highlight or hide? Why? 
  • Why is it important to have control or agency over how we tell our own stories?