Redland Art Gallery portrait of respected Elder on loan to Parliament

One of the Redland Art Gallery Collection’s treasured portraits has found a temporary home in the Queensland Parliament’s Reconciliation Gallery.

Redland Art Gallery (RAG) has loaned the portrait of well-respected Ngugi Elder and Quandamooka Traditional Owner Uncle Bob Anderson (Dr Robert Anderson OAM) to the Parliament until March 2024.

The portrait, titled Spirit Man Walking Country Once More, is by local artist Jo Fay Duncan.

Redland City Mayor Karen Williams said it was fitting Uncle Bob’s portrait was showcased at the Queensland Parliament during National Reconciliation Week (27 May to 3 June).

“Uncle Bob’s story continues to inspire and educate,” Cr Williams said.

“I had the pleasure of opening artist Jo Fay Duncan’s exhibition at RAG, Cleveland two years ago and seeing this powerful artwork that reflects part of Uncle Bob’s journey and the spiritual meaning attached to the end of sand mining on Minjerribah.

“It is an honour to share that journey with the people of Queensland through this portrait.”

Uncle Bob is widely respected for his work in the area of reconciliation and has a long association with native title determinations over Quandamooka country.

He was a co-applicant in the Mulgumpin (Moreton Island) and Quandamooka Coast Native Title claims.

Native title on Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island) was recognised on 4 July 2011, paving the way for an end to sand mining on the island and the transition to sustainable practices that protect cultural heritage and the environment.

Spirit Man Walking Country Once More was inspired by two years of audio recordings between Uncle Bob and the artist.

“Uncle Bob spoke of being denied the right to walk Country by the foreign-owned sand mining company stating, ‘the mining company has stolen the footprints of my Ancestors’,” reads the artist’s statement on the work.

“The painting depicts him walking Country once more with the swirling spirit of the Land surrounding him.”

The RAG Collection includes more than 750 artworks produced by more than 250 artists. These include local, emerging, established, early settler and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists.

For more information about the RAG Collection, visit the Redland Art Gallery website.