Joan Ross is a finalist in the 2025 Archibald Prize at the Art Gallery of NSW with her painting Kidjerikidjeri.
Joan Ross is known for confronting Australia’s colonial history through her interdisciplinary practice. She won the 2017 Sulman Prize and is a three-time Archibald finalist. This year, her subject is First Nations curator Coby Edgar.
‘I don’t do a lot of portraits, but when I decide to attempt one, I want the sitter to be involved, because the way we see ourselves is important,’ says Ross.
‘Coby is a friend. A strong, straight-talking Gulumerridjin (Larrakia) woman and an amazing writer, she recently co-curated my show at the National Portrait Gallery, which I couldn’t have done without her.
‘The title Kidjerikidjeri (willy wagtail) is her given name. Coby is a queer woman and the bright red and orange symbolises this. I had the idea of portraying her in a colonial dress. She suggested it be pulled down to the waist to emulate the portraits of her ancestors, photographed by Paul Foelsche in the 1800s. Her body is painted in a wash of ochre and the tattoos were designed by and represent people in her family. She chose to hold red seeds that her ancestor Billiamook gifted to the first colonials. I have used hi-vis (as I often do) as a stamp of colonisation to show that it’s a stain on us all.’
Artwork:
