Judy Watson facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Judy Watson
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Sculpture Fire and Water (2007) by Judy Watson at Reconciliation Place in Canberra.
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| Born | 1959 |
| Nationality | Australian |
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| Known for | Print-making, painting, installation |
| Movement | Contemporary Indigenous Australian art |
Judy Watson, born in 1959, is an Australian artist from the Waanyi people. She creates art using many different methods like print-making, painting, and video. Her art often explores the history of Indigenous Australians. She has also created many important artworks for public places.
Contents
Becoming an Artist
Judy Watson was born in Mundubbera, Queensland, in 1959. She lives and works in Brisbane.
Her Art School Journey
Judy studied art at several universities. She earned a diploma in 1979. Then, she got a bachelor's degree from the University of Tasmania between 1980 and 1982. Later, she completed a graduate diploma at Monash University in 1986. At the University of Tasmania, she learned many art techniques. One important technique was lithography, which is a type of print-making. This skill has greatly influenced all her artwork.
Judy Watson's Art Career
Judy Watson first trained as a print-maker. Her paintings, videos, and art installations often use layers. These layers help to show how different realities can exist at the same time. As an Aboriginal Australian artist, showing the land is very important in her work.
Awards and Exhibitions
In 1995, Judy won the Moët & Chandon Fellowship. This award allowed her to travel to France and later show her art there. In 1997, she represented Australia at the Venice Biennale. This is a very famous art exhibition. She was there with other important artists, Yvonne Koolmatrie and Emily Kame Kngwarreye.
In 2005, Judy created a special artwork for the Musée du quai Branly in France. She worked with other Aboriginal artists on this project. A film called The French Connection was made about their work.
Art with a Message
Judy Watson's art often has strong political messages. However, she usually shares these messages in a subtle way. She once said that art can be soft or strong. She tries to make her art beautiful on the outside. But inside, it carries a powerful message that slowly reaches the viewer.
In 2008, Judy worked with artist Yhonnie Scarce. They created art to remember Judy's great-great-grandmother, Rosie. Rosie had escaped from a very difficult situation at Lawn Hill Station. For this artwork, the artists made casts of 40 pairs of ears from volunteers. They then attached them to a wall. This piece honored those who suffered and survived.
The City of Sydney asked Judy to create a large public artwork. This sculpture is called bara. It is located in the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney. The artwork shows bara, which are fish hooks. Aboriginal women from the local Eora nation have made these hooks for thousands of years.
Main Ideas in Her Art
A book about Judy Watson's work, called blood language (2009), talks about her main themes. These include water, skin, poison, dust, blood, ochre, bones, and driftnet. These themes show how she uses natural and cultural ideas in her art.
Judy's recent art often looks at historical records. She explores the histories of Indigenous Australians. For example, her series a preponderance of aboriginal blood (2005) was created for the State Library of Queensland. This work celebrated 100 years of women being able to vote in Queensland. It also marked 40 years since Aboriginal people gained the right to vote. The artwork uses old documents from the Queensland State Archives. These documents show how Aboriginal people were stopped from voting. Before 1965, voting rights depended on the "percentage of Aboriginal blood" a person had. This is why Judy chose the title for her series. The famous Tate Modern museum in London now owns this series.
Another series of six engravings is called the holes in the land (2015). This work is about the loss of Aboriginal cultural objects. Four of the images show Aboriginal items kept in the British Museum. The title highlights the harm caused to the land and culture when these items were taken away.
Exhibitions and Collections
Judy Watson's art has been shown in many places around the world.
Solo and Duo Exhibitions
- 2024: mudunama kundana wandaraba jarribirri: Judy Watson, QAGOMA
- 2020–2021: Looking Glass: Judy Watson and Yhonnie Scarce, shown at Ikon Gallery in Birmingham and TarraWarra Museum of Art in Victoria.
- 2016: the names of places, Institute of Modern Art, Brisbane.
- 2015: the holes in the land, grahame galleries + editions, Brisbane.
- 2015: the holes in the land; heron island suite, Toowoomba Regional Gallery.
- 2014: sacred ground beating heart / experimental beds / heron island suite, Noosa Regional Gallery.
- 2013: experimental beds, Brenda May Gallery, Sydney.
- 2012: shell, Milani Gallery, Brisbane.
- 2012: experimental beds, University of Virginia, USA and grahame galleries + editions, Brisbane.
- 2011-2012: waterline, Tolarno Galleries, Melbourne and Embassy of Australia, Washington DC, US.
- 2011: heron island suite, Touring Regional Galleries in Western Australia, New South Wales and Queensland.
- 2010: heron island suite, grahame galleries + editions, Brisbane.
- 2009-2012: heron island, University of Virginia, USA; grahame galleries + editions, Brisbane; and touring across Western Australia, New South Wales, and Queensland.
- 2009: bad and doubtful debts, Milani Gallery, Brisbane.
- 2009: heron island, University of Queensland Art Museum; University of Queensland, Brisbane.
- 1993: Dropping into Water Slowly, Australian Girls Own Gallery, Canberra.
- 1991: Inspiration – Expiration, Australian Girls Own Gallery, Canberra.
Major Group Exhibitions
- 1991: Frames of Reference: Aspects of Feminism and Art, Artspace.
- 1993: First Asia-Pacific Triennale of Contemporary Art, Queensland Art Gallery.
- 1995: Antipodean Currents: Ten Contemporary Artists from Australia, Guggenheim Museum, New York.
- 2005: A Gift to the World: The Australian Indigenous Art Commission at the Musée du quai Branly, Australian Indigenous Art Commission.
- 2007: Cultural Warriors, Indigenous Art Triennale, National Gallery of Australia.
Art in Public Collections
Judy Watson's art can be found in many important art collections, including:
- Art Gallery of New South Wales
- National Gallery of Australia
- Queensland Art Gallery
- Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney
- Tate Modern, London
- National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
- Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Hobart
- Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington
Awards and Recognition
- 1995: Moet and Chandon Fellowship
- 2006: National Gallery of Victoria's Clemenger Art Award
- 2006: Works on Paper Award at the 23rd National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Awards
Legacy
In 2011, Judy Watson shared her story in a digital interview for the State Library of Queensland. In this interview, she talked about her art, her family, and the future of Aboriginal art in Australia.
