Marie McMahon facts for kids

Marie Elizabeth Rita McMahon, born in September 1953, is an Australian artist. She is well-known for her paintings, prints, posters, drawings, and design work. Marie has worked with many Aboriginal Australian communities. As of 2020, she works in Sydney. Her art often focuses on important social, political, and environmental issues. Her posters about Aboriginal rights and life are found in major art galleries across Australia.

Marie McMahon's Early Life

Marie McMahon was born in Melbourne, Australia, in September 1953. She grew up on Australian Air Force bases. These bases were in places like Darwin, Richmond (near Sydney), and at HMAS Albatross. HMAS Albatross is a naval base on the South Coast of New South Wales. In the 1960s, her family lived in the Philippines before returning to Sydney.

Joining the Earthworks Poster Collective

In 1976, Marie joined the Earthworks Poster Collective. This group was part of the Tin Sheds Art Workshop at the University of Sydney. While working there, she helped create many posters. These posters were often educational and made people think.

Working with Aboriginal Communities

In 1980, the Aboriginal Arts Board asked Marie and other screen printers to work at Tiwi Designs in the Northern Territory. Later in the 1980s, Marie worked as a designer at Redback Graphix. This was in Wollongong and Sydney. There, she made famous posters about health for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Marie McMahon's Artworks

As a printer, Marie has created many types of art. These include etchings, linocuts, lithographs, and screen prints.

Famous Posters and Health Campaigns

Some of her most well-known posters include You are on Aboriginal land. She also created posters for the Australian Government's health campaigns. These included Beat the grog (about healthy living choices) and Condoman (about health awareness). She made these posters with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workers.

Art at The Tin Sheds Workshop

In 1976, Marie started working at The Tin Sheds Workshop at the University of Sydney. Many women artists there were making posters about women's issues. In 2015, the Sydney University Gallery held an exhibition called Girls in the Tin Shed. Marie had several of her artworks in this show. In the 1970s, posters were a popular and cheap way to share ideas through art. Marie said that the women artists felt like outsiders to the main art world. They were inspired by groups like the Sex Pistols and the Clash.

Prints at the National Gallery of Australia

Marie also made prints at the Australian Print Workshop in Fitzroy, Victoria. Because of this, her work was part of a big exhibition. It was called Place Made: Australian Print Workshop and was held in early 2004 at the National Gallery of Australia (NGA). The NGA bought many prints from the Workshop. They bought over 90 of Marie McMahon's prints.

Art Inspired by Landscapes and Politics

From 1988 to 1996, Marie worked in the Tiwi Islands. She lived in Batchelor, south of Darwin. From 2000 to 2001, she lived in Gunbalanya, Arnhem Land. There, she made a series of collages. These artworks showed the landscapes around her. From 2009 to 2010, her art focused on political events in Indochina and Cambodia.

Women's Domestic Needlework Group

In 1976, Marie McMahon and artist Frances (Budden) Phoenix started The Women's Domestic Needlework Group (WDNG). Their goal was to bring attention to creative practices like embroidery, knitting, crochet, lace making, and needlework. Historically, these skills were not valued as much as other art forms.

The D'Oyley Exhibition

The most important of their four exhibitions was the D'Oyley exhibition. It was held at Watters Gallery in Sydney in 1979. This exhibition focused on women's 'fancywork'. It showed more than 700 handmade doilies that were collected from different thrift shops. The Crafts Board of the Australia Council helped to pay for this exhibition.

Where to See Her Art

Marie McMahon's prints and posters are kept in many important art collections. These include:

• The National Gallery of Victoria
• The Bendigo Regional Gallery
• The National Gallery of Australia
• The Art Gallery of New South Wales
• The Australian Queer Archives
• The Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney

Her work is also in various regional galleries across Australia and in private collections.