Barbara McGrady facts for kids

Barbara McGrady (born in 1950) is an Aboriginal Australian photographer and photojournalist. She lives in Sydney, New South Wales. She is known as the first Indigenous Australian photojournalist.

Early Life and Learning

Barbara McGrady was born in 1950 in Mungindi, New South Wales. She is a Gomeroi (Gamilaraay) and Murri woman. Her family comes from the north-west of NSW and southern Queensland.

When she was a teenager, Barbara started taking photos of her family and the places around her. Her mother bought her a camera. She loved looking at black and white photos of black sportspeople in magazines like Time, Life, and National Geographic. These photos made her want to become a photojournalist.

She also studied to become a sociologist, which means she learned about how people live in groups and societies. She is also an athlete and loves sports.

What She Does

For 30 years, Barbara McGrady has been taking photos of important events for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. She focuses on families and communities in places like Redfern, Surry Hills, and Waterloo. She takes these photos from her own view as a Gomeroi woman.

She is the first Indigenous photojournalist in Australia.

Barbara is especially good at photographing Indigenous Australian sports stars and events. She has taken pictures of famous people like Gary Foley, who works to protect human rights for Australia's First Nations People. Gary Foley says Barbara is a "true historian" because she records the experiences of Aboriginal people.

Her famous photos include:

• Adam Goodes with Lewis Jetta and Lance (Buddy) Franklin during the Indigenous round in AFL football.
• World champion Aboriginal boxer Anthony "Choc" Mundine.
• The Koori Knockout Carnival, which is one of the biggest gatherings for Indigenous people in Australia.
• The Sista Girls at the Sydney Mardi Gras.

She has also photographed Prince Harry, and music concerts for British singer Ed Sheeran, and American rappers Nelly and Snoop Dogg.

In 2020, Barbara worked with filmmaker John Janson-Moore on a big art project. It was called Ngiyaningy Maran Yaliwaunga Ngaara-li (Our Ancestors Are Always Watching). This project was shown at the Campbelltown Arts Centre.

Barbara works as a freelance photographer, which means she works for herself. as of 2019^[update], she is an active member of the Glebe community. She often gives her time and skills for free to help with community projects.

Where Her Work Is Seen

Barbara McGrady's photos have been shown in many places. These include NAIDOC, NITV, National Indigenous Times, Reconciliation Australia, Aboriginal Legal Service, and Gadigal Information Service.

She was also featured in a TV show called Desperate Measures in 2013. The episode was called "Through the Lens with Barbara McGrady" and you can watch it on SBS on Demand.

Awards She Has Won

• 2014: Anthony Mundine Courage Award. This was part of the first National Indigenous Human Rights Awards.
• 2015: Solid Screen International Award for Indigenous Women in Film and Photography. She won this for her photo work.

Her Life

Even though Barbara McGrady is a respected photojournalist, she still sometimes experiences racism in Australia. She is good friends with another photojournalist, Lisa Hogben.

She has a health condition called COPD, which can make it harder for her to move around.

Art Shows

Barbara McGrady's work has been shown in many art exhibitions:

• 2013: Head On Festival; Visions in Black and White – Images from Indigenous Australia at Redfern Community Centre, Sydney.
• 2014: Head On Photographic Exhibition. She had her own show at The Rocks Discovery Museum from May to July 2014.
• 2017: Always Will Be, at the Australian Centre for Photography, from November to December 2017.
• 2018: Inner City NAIDOC – Deadly Women of Redfern by Aunty Barbara McGrady.
• 2020: Campbelltown Arts Centre.
• 2020: Artist Talk with John Janson-Moore.
• 2020: Her work was shown at the Art Gallery of New South Wales as part of the 2020 Biennale of Sydney. Her photo from 2013 of TJ Hickey's family was displayed.
• 2023: Barbara McGrady: Australia Has a Black History, at the Chau Chak Wing Museum, from December 2023 to June 2024.

Where Her Photos Are Kept

Some of Barbara McGrady's photographs are kept in the Australian Museum in Sydney.