c. 1940's
Country:Port Augusta, South Australia
Medium:Watercolour on Board, Acrylic and Oils on Canvas
Subjects:Landscapes, Untitled Landscape, Untitled
Gordon paints landscapes and spiritual figures within the landscape. Though having no formal training the influences on his painting stem back to his childhood days drawing with charcoal and experimenting with watercolours. During his adult working life he has continued to paint. Gordon spent many years in Central Australia and is highly influenced by the MacDonnell Ranges.
The spiritual figures within his landscapes relate to his reading about Dreamtime stories and what he has experienced from the landscape. He has also painted murals including the Palace Hotel in Broken Hill, as seen in the film Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.
Gordon grew up at Colebrook Home, Eden Hills in Adelaide. He is part of what is now known as the 'stolen generation' - a government policy of removing indigenous children from their families, often, as in Gordon's situation, being placed in a public institution. Tracing family history has in the past been very difficult and this equates to his lack of family history.
This landscape by Gordon reflects the colour and formation of the many ranges, hills, gorges and flora that are found in his country, Port Augusta, West of Alice Springs in Central Australia. This country truly has the blue and purple colours of the ranges in the distance, the rich colour in the sand and an amazing contrast when the plentiful flora is in bloom.