*photography: >>photo essays: stories of the stolen generations, uluru: zeta's story

Nuns came to Ross River station one day and asked the Aboriginal mothers if they could take the children shopping for the day. The children happily went with the nuns to Alice Springs but there was no shopping. They were placed in a Catholic institution and then moved to Melville Island mission in the Torres Strait. After more than 40 years, Zeta was re-united with her family. Her mother, who had been told by white authorities that her daughter was dead, could not accept her, but Zeta’s Aunties did welcome her back and she also reconnected with her tribal lands. Zeta has no bitterness towards the government, or the church. She is a deeply loving and compassionate person. Her forgiveness is inspiring and humbling to witness.

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These figurative sculptures depict childhood experiences recalled by members of the stolen generations* from Uluru, central Australia. Their stories were collected by Mutitjulu elder Bob Randall from his own personal experience and that of his peers, and interpreted by sculptor Hazel MacKinnon. Each sculpture was photographed on location where the story originally occurred, spanning 500 km from Uluru to Alice Springs.

*The term 'stolen generations' refers to Aboriginal Australian children who were forcibly removed from their families under national government policy. It is estimated that between 1910 and 1970, over 50 000 chidren were thus removed and placed in church or government institutions. They were often raised hundreds of kilometres from their tribal homelands, without further contact with their families and indigenous culture, including their tribal languages and lands. This project was a collaboration between Bob Randall, Hazel MacKinnon and Kia Mistilis, aimed at promoting better community understanding of our shared history.