Growing up as an Indigenous Australian, Brian McKinnon always felt on the fringes of society. Finding pathos and beauty in the makeshift bricolage of life on the outskirts of white Australia, the work of Brian McKinnon presents an uncompromising and powerful message of Indigenous determination and strength.

Indigenart, The Mossenson Galleries is proud to present the first major solo exhibition of mixed-media works from this important contemporary artist. Who Am I?

New Works by Brian McKinnon will be opened at 6pm on Wednesday 25 October 2006 by the Hon. Gavin Jennings, MLC, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs. Brian McKinnon will be present for the opening.

In July 2006, Brian McKinnon made headlines when his work Sorry (King Little Johnny) was removed from an exhibition of Indigenous art being held to celebrate NAIDOC week at Parliament House in Melbourne. According to the speaker of the house, Judy Maddigan, the work was deemed ‘too political’ for parliament. It was a cruel irony that this work was censored from the centre of Victorian democracy, as according to McKinnon, the works was about “the removal of the Aboriginal voice through assimilation and the demise of self-determination.”

Utilising a range of materials, including wood, natural ochres, corrugated iron and barbed wire, Brian’s work attempts to embody a lifetime of experiences through the compilation of diverse available materials. Through this process of bricolage, McKinnon creates a highly personal iconography that attempts to reconstruct the tribal through the process of bridging the gaps.

Brian McKinnon has exhibited to critical acclaim throughout Australia and Europe and in 2006 has been selected in numerous major art prizes,winning the Gumbri, White Dove Award for Victorian Indigenous artists.