THE DROVER’S DREAM
$5,500
This diptych tells the story of East Arrernte man, Alan Drover. When I met Alan in Alice Springs some years ago, he told me the story of his ‘education’. Growing up on various Central Australian cattle stations, he learned his trade as a stockman. He received no formal schooling, but he did receive a valuable skill set that empowered him to master a stockhorse and make an extremely valuable and often unrecognised contribution to pioneering the Northern Territory.
I was deeply impacted by Alan’s kind and gentle nature and his openness to talk-stories about growing up in the bush. I immediately asked him if I could paint his picture to honour his life. The fictional stockman symbolises Alan as a younger man doing what he loved doing. Through this artwork we can enter Alan’s memory and dreams of the old days.
Oil on canvas (diptych)
75 x 60cm
Artist Statement: Thomas Higgs is an art teacher and emerging artist who won the Portrait of a Senior Territorian 2021. He studied Photography at the Northern Territory University and has practised as an artist in multiple disciplines including sculpture, installation and most recently as a painter. His particular interest is in weaving narratives into his work to tell the stories of the unique Northern Territory people and histories.
Contact Tactile Arts on 08 8981 6616 or admin@tactilearts.org.au to purchase.
