Heads, Ned Kelly, Sidney Nolan and stolen cars

I am currently reading about Ned Kelly. He is an Australian folk hero, and the equivalent of the Englishman Robin Hood or the American Jesse James. Most societies have this kind of peoples’ hero. Since there are aspects to the story that remind me of South Africa, like the unrelenting poverty and the corrupt police, it has made me wonder who our folk hero is.

The reason I initially took an interest in Ned Kelly is because I enjoy the paintings of Sidney Nolan. He seems to have had great fun painting a diverse range of subjects that at first appear unreal. However, the work is usually rooted in real people, places and events. He has also managed to explore and express that which is beyond the tangible in his paintings. Kelly and his gang is often the subject of his work, but he was especially interested in Ned’s helmeted head as it delivers content on many levels.

Like many artists I feel compelled to make a “head” every now and again. I have heard some say that a head is a head is a head, and if they mean it is boring or has no content, I disagree. For me it is a vehicle to express oneself and if it is a known and limited form, it is also unlimited in the possible variations of that form. Familiar and yet open to interpretation and invention.

My new images, “Exhale” and “Wild Man of the Woods” (now at the Gallery on the Square) are different from one another and for now they have fulfilled that compulsion.

Perhaps it is the wrong time for me to be reading Kelly’s story, as the person who stole my car is making it difficult for me to recognise Ned’s good points and any reason for him to be a champion of the people. At present, my heroes are likely to be bounty hunters and those who impose Shariah law. I am lacking in sympathy and am tired of the redistribution of my pittance. I find myself wanting the same swift “justice” meted out to Ned Kelly for my thief. His head in a noose!

Forgive me for my bloody thoughts, but this is the 6th car that I have had stolen.