Rutherglen Corroboree

This pen and ink sketch is by the nineteenth century Aboriginal artist, Tommy McRae from southeastern Austalia. It is a fine example ofhis distinctive pen and ink drawings of silhouetted dancing corroboree figures, each sketched with their own distinctive clan markings. Images of corroborees and fighting scenes as well as hunting forays on tribal lands in years gone became McRae's trademark. Corroborees were a very common theme for McRae in his work. Little attention is given to the surroundings and this serves to highlight the figures and body decorations. The dancers are placed from edge to edge and clan affiliations are marked on each individual. The use of red ink provides contrast and accentuates the designs. Each man is portrayed with a distinctive pointed beard and is wearing a tasselled pubic cover. A shield and club is held aloft in the left hand while each also holds two spears upright in the right hand. They also stand astride of one another and knees are bent to give a sense of performance and movement. McRae began painting in the 1860s and much of his subject matter is drawn from memory or oral tradition in Australia's southeastern regions. He mainly used black ink, but worked at times with red, blue and purple. McRae typically drew the ground first and then worked on the figures from the feet upwards. Individual designs on dancers or others depicted in their portrayals of ceremonies linked each participant to a specific clan or totemic affiliation.