Redback Graphix and Its Aftermath Fresh Blood Contents
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REDBACK GRAPHIX AND ITS AFTERMATH FRESH BLOOD CONTENTS FRESH BLOOD: REDBACK GRAPHIX AND ITS AFTERMATH 06-13 STUART BAILEY SYDNEY 2018 – POSTER PRODUCTION AND DISSEMINATION IN A CITY WITHOUT WALLS 14-21 WENDY MURRAY LIVING POLITICS IN THE CITY: FROM TRANSGRESSIONAL GRAFFITI TO ROGUE POSTER CAMPAIGNS 22-35 FLAVIA MARCELLO LIST OF WORKS 38-39 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 40 Opposite page: Raise the dole dance, 1984 Redback Graphix / Michael Callaghan, Sharon Pusell (printer), Craig Donarski (printers assistant) 2 Colour screenprint on paper, 750 x 500 mm 3 FRESH BLOOD REDBACK GRAPHIX AND ITS AFTERMATH 4 5 FRESH BLOOD: REDBACK GRAPHIX AND ITS AFTERMATH BY STUART BAILEY Between 1979 and 1994 Redback Graphix was an art and design collective known and respected for its political activism. Grass-roots in its relationship to politics, the collective designed posters that were plastered in public spaces throughout Australia and beyond. The ethos of Redback Graphix was dem- ocratic and egalitarian, with a special bent to give voice to the marginalized and oppressed. They addressed economic inequality, advocated for fairness in the workplace, promoted union membership and focused on issues affecting migrants. Today, these posters provide rich insight into social issues of the 1980s and ‘90s, and are a model of political engagement for artists, designers and activists. Fresh Blood: Redback Graphix and its aftermath highlights the historical significance of Redback Graphix by examining its ongoing political and artistic impact. The curators argue for the continuing relevance of the political post- er in Australia by installing the posters of Redback Graphix in dialogue with contemporary works by artists Mini Graff, ZAP!, Blak Douglas, Alex Latham, PITS and CAMO. This highlights how issues addressed by the collective in the 1980s and 90s are still relevant to contemporary art and artists, many of whom chose Printmedia as a key dimension of their practice. They vouch for the fact that the poster is perhaps not as otiose or as out-of-date as some may have us believe. This exhibition poses the question: Why are political posters Mark your Mark, 2015 still relevant in the age of social media, and how have the issues they address Mini Graff shifted since the era of Redback Graphix? Colour screenprint on 90gsm litho (from three stencils) 700 x 500 mm Previous spread, Fresh Blood: Redback Graphix and its aftermath, Installation view 07 Use your brain, use the train, 1990 Redback history and significance with at times abrasive approach has lent Redback Redback Graphix / Michael Callaghan Redback was conceived my Michael Callaghan in Graphics its esteem in the history of Australian po- Colour screenprint, from four stencils on paper 491 x 742mm 1979 during an artist residency at Griffith University litical graphics. in Brisbane.1 Inspired by the direction of his earlier work with Earthworks Poster Collective, he estab- Pressing issues, then and now lished Redback Graphix in 1979 with an aim to not The exhibition draws attention to the historical sig- only advocate for political causes he believed in, but nificance of Redback Graphix output and demands a to draw a living wage for his efforts. Callaghan and consideration of their ongoing influence. When com- collaborator Gregor Cullen had a belief that individu- paring political posters from the 1980s and 90s to als could make a difference in local and international those of today, the stubborn nature of some social political issues. Michael Callaghan, Gregor Cullen, issues becomes apparent. While posters produced Alison Alder and Leonie Lane formed the core of the today may have a contemporary inflection and sub- group with additional designers and printmakers re- tlety, the urgency with which the issues weigh on the cruited depending on the needs of the project.2 Over creators is undiminished. time they would be joined by former Earthworks One of the most recognizable Redback Graphix members Marie McMahon, Jan Mackay and Ray posters is If the unemployed are dole bludgers what Young amoungst others. In 1980 the studio moved the fuck are the idle rich? from 1979. Founder Mi- to Stuart Park in Wollongong and set up shop in a chael Callaghan designed and printed the images disused kiosk. that aimed to critically reflect on the popular com- Redback Graphix emerged at a time when com- plaint that those receiving unemployment benefits munity-based print collectives were thriving. In were lazy and taking advantage of the system. Under 1973 under the Whitlam government the Commu- the titular text a painfully bright pink chimpanzee nity Arts Board of the Australia Council funded com- wearing a swimming costume lounges comfortably munity-based projects that fostered the activities of under a colourful umbrella with a cooling drink in arts organisations within their respective commu- their hand. True to the business model of Redback nities.3 These included groups working in Sydney, Graphix the poster was commissioned by Steel City Melbourne, Canberra and Darwin such as Another Pictures to help raise funds for an upcoming film pro- Planet, Garage Graphix, Cockroach Posters, Lucifoil duction helmed by Michael’s sister Mary Callaghan.6 Poster Collective, Redletter Press, ACME ink, Jalak The negative view of the unemployed and their Graphics and Matilda Graphics amoungst others. financial support by the government has gained real Despite this, Redback Graphix did not easily fit this traction in the neo-conservative political environment model and instead was a design agency that had an emerging from the 1980s onwards. The stalling of artists-client relationship.4 In its early days it most the growth of the dole has been viewed as punitive7 often relied on trade unions or political groups to and the current payment is well below the poverty fund the production of posters but toward the late line and minimum wage.8 Until recently even the no- 1980s state funded groups commissioned a greater tion of protesting this minimal amount of government number works.5 assistance seemed unthinkable, however there has Aesthetically, the early works were informed by been a minor shift in attitude with even conservative the cut-and-paste approach of late 1970s punk politicians acknowledge the impossibility of surviving culture, along with its antagonism. As the collec- and finding work on Newstart allowance.9 tive moved into the 1980s fluorescent colours and The reality of being an unemployed, or under geometric patterns provided active, eye catching employed today is addressed by Dewey Tafoya and compositions. Even when reflecting design trends Wendy Murray in their 2017 poster Working poor of the 1980s, the collective’s work was always bold isn’t working for us! 2017. The artists used outmod- and distinctive. Wry political commentary combined ed Letraset text and clip art to generate a punchy 08 09 text-based screen-printed poster that addresses a considerable advantage in cutting through the the plight of those surviving on an income below mass-produced and omnipresent commercial ad- the poverty line, the under-employed and workers vertising. They exist as a marker of defiance in the living project-to-project in the ‘gig’ economy. This is a face of sanctioned messages from the state or adver- much-needed update on the pithy commentary of If tisers occupying public spaces that are under threat the unemployed are dole bludgers what the fuck are of ongoing privatisation and ever expanding digital the idle rich? from 1979. It highlights the fact that surveillance. An illicit poster is an artefact that em- the inadequate Newstart payment is just one con- bodies resistance. It can be an unexpectedly intimate sideration in a range of interconnected issues that mode of communication, evoking a special sense of affect not only the unemployed, but all of those at the liberation from forces that seek to control and mon- mercy of the labour market. The issues have shift- etize public space.14 This compelling aspect of the ed and become more complex as worker rights and medium applies equally to the strident messages of the strength of unions have been eroded.10 Perhaps activists and the more indirect commentary of artists. surprisingly, both works have a great deal in com- In the face of these changes artists motivations mon, despite the considerable shifts in politics and for persisting are multifarious and the attraction of communication technologies that have occurred in working unsanctioned in public spaces shows no the twenty-five years that separate their production. sign of abating. When considering the enduring nature of political For some artists the material presence of a poster posters across recent time it is important to note the is a reminder that we inhabit a physical world.15 The immense shifts in the nature of political communica- virtual spaces we occupy offer a kind of social con- tion. The emergence of online activism encourages nection before unavailable, however they are also sti- the fast dispersal of political messages globally and fling, predictable and prone to censorship motivated can successfully target an engaged audience with by corporate and political interests. Wendy Murray ease. In response some commentators have herald- has similar motivations and will continue posting her ed the death of the political poster anew, as has been work on the streets. In an email exchange regarding the case at the emergence of every new communi- her motivations she insisted: cation medium, from cinema, radio and television to “Nothing can replace that feeling - when you digital communication and social media.11 While the turn a street corner and see a poster or piece relevance of political graphics in digital form seems of street art that surprises, intrigues or dis- undeniable the idea of hand-printing posters and turbs you. Also, unlike social media, your au- painstakingly distributing them throughout the city dience hasn’t ‘followed’ you and your work is surely an anachronism? - you’re just there.