LAUSR

Displayed in one of the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory’s (MAGNT) major galleries, this stand-alone exhibition concerns the Northern Territory (NT) during its first decade under Commonwealth rule. The title presumably refers to dislocations caused by World War I and the union-led protests against the new administration that culminated in a mass demonstration on 17 December 1918 (later named the Darwin Rebellion) that led to the withdrawal of Administrator John Gilruth. Moving clockwise through the exhibition, a series of themes is discernible: the coming of the Commonwealth; daily life in the Territory; World War I; industry; and the Rebellion. Displays in the centre of the room, accessible at several points, deal with transport and communications. The exhibition space is reached via a corridor lined with large, backlit photographic portraits from 1911 to 1921. These images portray the unique Territory demography when Aborigines were the majority, followed by the Chinese and then Europeans. The photographs highlight diverse Territorian lifestyles by including a traditionally-dressed Aboriginal man with a spear; three uniformed, rifle-bearing Aboriginal trackers; a well-dressed Aboriginal family with a respectable-looking European couple; a barefoot (but happy-looking) European man with his Aboriginal wife; an elderly Chinese labourer; and a prosperous Chinese merchant with his large family. Such powerful images feature throughout the exhibition alongside artefacts from the collections of MAGNT, other institutions and individuals that enhance the viewer’s experience and understanding of the exhibition’s themes. The first section of the exhibition explains how it was believed that the transfer from South Australia to the Commonwealth would help the NT achieve its unrealised potential. However, the outbreak of World War I meant money earmarked for Territory development was diverted elsewhere and economic progress proved elusive. Territorians also accused Gilruth and his administration of mismanagement. Other developments can be viewed today only with regret. For example, dog registration tags from the South Australian period are displayed alongside identification discs used from 1912 in an (unsuccessful) attempt to control the movements of Aborigines in Darwin. The accompanying text declares that the issuing of these discs placed it beyond doubt for Aborigines that Europeans viewed them as ‘all same dog’. Photographs of the miserable ‘half-caste’ homes established in Darwin and Central Australia underline the point.