Well-known figures continue to mystify
BOB HAWKE thought the blue figure was Ned Kelly. John Laws
thought it symbolised the economy. And to Cathy Freeman, it
represented someone unwise and uncaring.
We’ll never know who’s right. The artist Martin Shaw, who
painted Three Well Known Australians in barely a day in
1982, banks on the mystery surrounding the figures’ identity for
the painting’s longevity. And for 25 years, the canvas has toured
Australia continuously, piquing people’s curiosity.
Giving a colour print of the painting and its title as a guide,
Shaw wrote to hundreds of famous people asking them to guess who
the figures were. The responses hang alongside the painting in an
exhibition at Parliament House in Canberra.
Ned Kelly came up often for the boxy blue figure on the left.
Not only was it the former prime minister’s guess back in 1993,
it’s been the suggestion of many members of the public who, over
the years, have recorded their opinions in binder books Shaw calls
yearbooks.
To the artist, the yearbooks - which chronicle the occupations,
addresses and the guesses of generations of Australians - are the
real work of art.
“They’re a national portrait,” Shaw says. “They’re like a
passing parade. Each generation in Australia chooses different
names for the images. The books are a social commentary of the
changing times in Australia.”
Indeed, the nominations have changed considerably. In 1983
common guesses were politicians such as Malcolm Fraser and Gough
Whitlam, in 2007, they’re more likely to be celebrities or abstract
concepts.
Cate Blanchett and Missy Higgins pop up now and the spindly
figure in green has been guessed more than once as Peter Garrett,
whose umbrella is symbolic, to some, of environmental
protection.
A constant over the decades has been for people to foist their
own experiences onto the mystery. Take the guesses of Michael
Chamberlain, the father of baby Azaria, who was snatched by a
dingo. He noticed a fourth figure in the painting rarely
acknowledged by others - the black creature in the corner.
“This might be symbolic of the dingo, the killer of our daughter
Azaria,” he wrote.
In truth, Shaw included the black and white dog as a memorial to
Pea, a friend’s pet. But he doesn’t mind people finding their own
meanings.
“What people are actually doing now are writing down who they
think they are, not who I meant for them to be,” he said.
And has anyone correctly guessed all three identities? That, the
54-year-old artist would not say, nor plans to tell before he
dies.
The exhibition at Parliament House continues until the end of
the month.
