Destiny Deacon HonFRPS (6 February 1957 – 23 May 2024) was an Australian photographer, broadcaster, political activist and media artist. She exhibited photographs and films across Australia and also internationally, focusing on politics and exposing the disparagement around

Australian Aboriginal culture Australian Aboriginal culture includes a number of practices and ceremonies centered on a belief in the Dreamtime and other mythology. Reverence and respect for the land and oral traditions are emphasised. The words "law" and "lore", the latter ...

s. She was credited with introducing the term " Blak" to refer to

Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...

' contemporary art, culture and history.

Early life

Deacon was born on 6 February 1957 in

Maryborough, Queensland Maryborough ( ) is a city and a Suburbs and localities (Australia), suburb in the Fraser Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the suburb of Maryborough had a population of 15,287 people. Geography Maryborough is located on the Mar ...

and was of the Kuku Yalanji of

Far North Queensland Far North Queensland (FNQ) is the northernmost part of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland. Its largest city is Cairns, Queensland, Cairns and it is dominated geographically by Cape York Peninsula, which stret ...

and Erub/Mer (

Torres Strait Islander Torres Strait Islanders ( ) are the Indigenous Melanesians, Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal Australians, Aboriginal peoples of the res ...

) peoples. She had 6 siblings, 4 from her mother's other relationship. Deacon relocated to

Port Melbourne Port Melbourne is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-west of the Melbourne central business district, located within the Cities of City of Melbourne, Melbourne and City of Port Phillip, Port Phillip Local government ...

in 1959 with her mother Eleanor Harding, who was then married to Destiny's father wharf labourer and unionist Warren Deacon. Soon after, Deacon's parents separated and she and her siblings were raised by her mother with the help of a close Indigenous community. Growing up, Deacon and her family lived in various Melbourne inner suburbs including commission housing, which influenced her world views greatly. She was a graduate of Mac.Robertson Girls' High School and her studio was at her house in

Brunswick, Victoria Brunswick is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, north of Melbourne's Melbourne city centre, Central Business District, located within the City of Merri-bek Local government areas of Victoria, local go ...

. Deacon's interest in photography started at a very early age. However, instead of pursuing photography, Deacon decided to attend university and study politics, a field that her mother had been very active within, being involved with the United Council of Aboriginal Women. After attending the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

and completing a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

program in politics and obtaining a Diploma in teaching from

La Trobe University La Trobe University is a public university, public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. Its main campus is located in the suburb of Bundoora, Victoria, Bundoora. The university was established in 1 ...

, Deacon moved on to first become a history teacher across various community and secondary schools around Victoria, and then to a tutor and lecturer in Australian Writing and Culture, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultural Production at the

. It wasn't until 1990 after a stint on

community radio Community radio is a radio service offering a third model of radio broadcasting in addition to commercial broadcasting, commercial and public broadcasting. Community broadcasting, Community stations serve geographic communities and communities o ...

for 3CR Melbourne that she decided to move into professional photography, after holding an exhibition with a few friends.

Artistic development

Before her venture into professional photography, Deacon became involved with the Aboriginal activist Charles Perkins, working from

Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...

as a staff trainer. Her strong interest in politics led her to become one of his "Angels", which was the beginning of her artistic endeavours. Using what she had learnt about politics through Perkins, the "Angels", and her upbringing, Deacon started taking photographs of her culture using her trademark "black dollies" and other

kitsch ''Kitsch'' ( ; loanword from German) is a term applied to art and design that is perceived as Naivety, naïve imitation, overly eccentric, gratuitous or of banal Taste (sociology), taste. The modern avant-garde traditionally opposed kitsch ...

items as props to expose

racism in Australia Racism in Australia comprises negative attitudes and views on race or ethnicity which are held by various people and groups in Australia, and have been reflected in discriminatory laws, practices and actions (including violence) at various time ...

Aesthetics

Deacon said in an interview published in the Biennale of Sydney in 2000: "Photography is white people's invention. Lots of things seem really technical, for example the camera, the darkroom.. I've started taking the kind of pictures I do because I can't paint..and then I discovered it was a good way of expressing some feelings that lurk inside". Deacon worked across a spectrum of different mediums including

photography Photography is the visual arts, art, application, and practice of creating images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is empl ...

video Video is an Electronics, electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving picture, moving image, visual Media (communication), media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, whi ...

, installation and

performance A performance is an act or process of staging or presenting a play, concert, or other form of entertainment. It is also defined as the action or process of carrying out or accomplishing an action, task, or function. Performance has evolved glo ...

, but the one she was most noted for was her use of

doll A doll is a physical model, model typically of a human or humanoid character, often used as a toy for children. Dolls have also been used in traditional religious rituals throughout the world. Traditional dolls made of materials such as clay and ...

s to convey her message about the racism that exists within Australia. Deacon's photography polarised popular Anglo culture against Indigenous existence, creating satirical images, using Aboriginal imagery, found items, family members, and friends in very strange scenarios. In the ''Oz'' (1998) series Deacon incorporated

Koori Koori (also spelt koorie, goori or goorie) is a demonym for Aboriginal Australians from a region that approximately corresponds to southern New South Wales and Victoria. The word derives from the Indigenous language Awabakal. For some people ...

kitsch dolls and showed the construction of identity is an old game that she could play too. Using ''

The Wizard of Oz ''The Wizard of Oz'' is a 1939 American Musical film, musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). Based on the 1900 novel ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' by L. Frank Baum, it was primarily directed by Victor Fleming, who left pro ...

'' as a starting point for her re-presentation of Aboriginal culture and identity, she recognised the fictionalising of history, identity and nationhood in Australia's past – a reminder that things are not always as they appear, nor what we have been made to believe; that history is written much similar to a story. Deacon coined the term " Blak" as a reference to Indigenous Australian culture in 1991, in the series ''Blak lik mi'', which was exhibited in ' Lisa Bellear, Brenda Croft and Destiny Deacon: Kudjeris' at the

Boomalli Aboriginal Artists Cooperative The Boomalli Aboriginal Artists Co-operative was founded in 1987 in the Sydney suburb of Redfern, New South Wales. Among the legacies of the Co-operative are the Deadly Awards for achievement in the Indigenous Australian community, which occu ...

from 13 November to 4 December 1991. The phrase referenced the 1961 book '' Black Like Me'' by white American journalist John Howard Griffin, detailing his 1959–60 journey through the US Deep South disguised as African American during a time of racial segregation. The title of his book was taken from African American author

Langston Hughes James Mercer Langston Hughes (February 1, 1901 – May 22, 1967) was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Joplin, Missouri. An early innovator of jazz poetry, Hughes is best known as a leader of the Harl ...

poem ''Dream Variations''. Deacon stated that she removed the 'c' from 'black' in resistance to the slur "black

cunt "Cunt" () is a vulgar word for the vulva in its primary sense, and it is used in a variety of ways, including as a term of disparagement. "Cunt" is often used as a disparaging and obscene term for a woman in the United States, an unpleas ...

", which she had heard shouted at her growing up. It is also suggested that Deacon was using a term possibly appropriated from American

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

or rap, the intention behind it was that it "reclaim dhistorical, representational, symbolical, stereotypical and romanticised notions of Black or Blackness", and expressed taking back power and control within a society that does not give its Indigenous peoples much opportunity for self-determination as individuals and communities. Deacon herself said that it was "taking on the 'colonisers' language and flipping it on its head", as an expression of authentic urban Aboriginal identity. ''Where's Mickey?'' (2003) shows the large difference between how Indigenous people are perceived by the white Australian population and the reality of her family and friends' lives. Deacon said about her work that the "Humour cuts deep. I like to think that there's a laugh and a tear in each".

Work and exhibitions

An early video work was ''"Home video" (1987)''. Deacon's first show, "''Pitcha Mi Koori''", was a part of the Melbourne Fringe Festival, and in 1991, her work was included in Aboriginal Women's Exhibition, at the

Art Gallery of New South Wales The Art Gallery of New South Wales (AGNSW), founded as the New South Wales Academy of Art in 1872 and known as the National Art Gallery of New South Wales between 1883 and 1958, is located in The Domain, Sydney, Australia. It is the most import ...

. Her first solo exhibition, ''Caste Offs'', was held in 1993 at the

Australian Centre for Photography The Australian Centre for Photography (ACP) was a not-for-profit photography gallery in Darlinghurst, Sydney, Australia that was established in 1973 and which also provided part-time courses and community programs. One of the longest running c ...

in Sydney. Deacon's work began to be included in group exhibitions in 1994, including ''Blakness: Blak City Culture!'' at the

Australian Centre for Contemporary Art The Australian Centre For Contemporary Art (ACCA) is a contemporary art gallery in Melbourne, Australia. The gallery is located on Sturt Street in the Melbourne Arts Precinct, in the inner suburb of Southbank, Victoria, Southbank. Designed by W ...

in Melbourne, ''True Colours: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Artists Raise the Flag'' at Bluecoat Gallery,

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

; South London Gallery; City Gallery, Leicester and in Australia. ''"Welcome to My Koori World" (video, 1992)'' was shown at the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...

in a show titled ''An Eccentric Orbit: Video Art in Australia'', which was also picked up by

ABC Television ABC Television most commonly refers to: *ABC Television Network of the American Broadcasting Company, United States, or *ABC Television (Australian TV network), a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Australia ABC Television or ABC ...

for the ''Blackout'' series. In 1998, Deacon explored her mother's life by photographing her family in the

Torres Strait Islands The Torres Strait Islands are an archipelago of at least 274 small islands in the Torres Strait, a waterway separating far northern continental Australia's Cape York Peninsula and the island of New Guinea. They span an area of , but their tot ...

after her death two years earlier, documenting it in a show titled "''Postcards from Mummy".'' This journey "allowed her to come to terms with the loss of her mother and the importance of history, memory and place to identify". Deacon was the director of the in 2010. She was a staff member of the RMIT School of Art from 1999 to 2012. Deacon's work was featured in numerous local and international exhibitions such as

Perspecta Perspecta was a directional motion picture sound system invented by the laboratories at Fine Sound Inc. in 1954. The company was founded by Mercury Records engineer C. Robert (Bob) Fine, husband of producer Wilma Cozart Fine. As opposed to magn ...

(1993, 1999),

Havana Biennial The Bienal de La Habana was a traditional Latin, Caribbean event, originated in Havana, Havana, Cuba, that aims to raise awareness to promote contemporary art and giving priority to Latin Americans, Latin-American and Caribbean artists. The eve ...

(1994), Johannesburg Biennale (1995), Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art (1996), Melbourne International Biennial (1999), Biennale of Sydney (2000), (2001), Das Lied von der Erde by (2001), Documenta 11 (2002), the Salzburger Kunstverein (2004) and most recently the Sharjah Biennial (2023). Destiny_Deacon_-_Freefall

''Walk & don't look blak'' was Deacon's first large retrospective held at the

Museum of Contemporary Art Australia The Museum of Contemporary Art Australia (MCA), formerly the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, is located on George Street, Sydney, George Street in The Rocks, Sydney, The Rocks neighbourhood of Sydney. The museum is housed in the Stripped Cl ...

, in 2004, encompassing the past 14 years of her work and practice. From there it toured the

Ian Potter Museum of Art The Potter Museum of Art at the University of Melbourne in Melbourne, Australia was established in 1972. The Potter, as it is known locally, presents a curated exhibition program of historical and contemporary art. Through its activities the Pot ...

at the

, the Adam Art Gallery and the

City Gallery Wellington City Gallery Wellington Te Whare Toi is a public art gallery in Wellington, New Zealand. History City Gallery Wellington Te Whare Toi began its life as the Wellington City Art Gallery on 23 September 1980 in a former office block located at 65 ...

, the Jean-Marie Tjibaou Cultural Centre in Noumea, New Caledonia, and the Tokyo Photographic Art Museum. For ''2004: Australian Culture Now'' at the ACMI in Melbourne, Deacon was commissioned to make a film for the programme ''

Neighbours ''Neighbours'' is an Australian television soap opera that has aired since 18 March 1985. It was created by television executive Reg Watson. The Seven Network commissioned the show following the success of Watson's earlier soap '' Sons and ...

'' ''(the remix)''. In 2020, the

National Gallery of Victoria The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and list of most visited art museums in the world, most visited art mu ...

mounted a retrospective exhibition of her work, the first in 15 years, curated by Indigenous curator Myles Russell-Cook, called DESTINY. Scheduled to run from 27 March to 9 August 2020, the opening of the gallery was delayed due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in Australia The COVID-19 pandemic in Australia was a part of the COVID-19 pandemic, worldwide pandemic of the coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by SARS-CoV-2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first confirmed case in Aust ...

. Russell-Cook also edited the mammoth ''Destiny'', a monograph celebrating her art and life. In 2009, she was awarded the Visual Artist of the Year Award by The Deadlys in 2009. She was also awarded the

National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Award The National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Award (NATSIAA) is Australia's longest running Indigenous art award. Established in 1984 as the National Aboriginal Art Award by the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory in Darw ...

that year. In September 2009, Deacon was awarded the Clemenger Contemporary Art Award. In 2019, she received an

honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...

in education from La Trobe University. In 2022, Destiny Deacon was awarded the Centenary Medal and Honorary Fellowship of the

Royal Photographic Society The Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain, commonly known as the Royal Photographic Society (RPS), is the world's oldest photographic society having been in continuous existence since 1853. It was founded in London, England, in 1853 as th ...

. She was also awarded the Red Ochre Award in May that year, along with Stephen Page. Deacon was awarded the by the Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac in 2023. Visite_Destiny_Deacon

In June 2024, Destiny Deacon work ''Arrears Window'' was featured on a "First Peoples Melbourne Art Tram", presented as part of the RISING: festival in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

Personal life and death

Deacon came out as lesbian in the 1970s. She died after a long illness in Melbourne on 23 May 2024, aged 67. According to

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

, Deacon had "faced significant health challenges over the past three years" by May 2022.

References

Bibliography

*Deacon, Destiny; Croft, Brenda L.; Bellear, Lisa; Delaney, Max; Fraser, Virginia; Kruger, Kim; Liddle, Celeste; Green, Nellie; Tibby, Ardy; Mosby, Tom (21 May 2016). ''Close to You: Photos from an Activist's Archive: the Lisa Bellear Picture Show''. Melbourne: Koorie Heritage Trust. *Deacon, Destiny (November 2004). ''Walk and Don't Look Blak: Resource Kit''. The Rocks, NSW: Museum of Contemporary Art – via AIATSIS Collections. *Deacon, Destiny (2004). ''Walk and Don't Look Blak''. The Rocks, NSW: Museum of Contemporary Art. *Deacon, Destiny; Croft, Brenda L. (1999). ''In My Father's House/Postcards from Mummy''. Paddington, NSW:

. *Deacon, Destiny (1994). ''My Boomerang Won't Come Back''. Adelaide: Contemporary Art Centre of South Australia.

External links

Destiny Deacon
at the

National Gallery of Australia The National Gallery of Australia (NGA), formerly the Australian National Gallery, is the national art museum of Australia as well as one of the largest art museums in Australia, holding more than 166,000 works of art. Located in Canberra in th ...

Destiny Deacon
at the

Destiny Deacon
at the Art Gallery of South Australia
Destiny Deacon
at the

Art Gallery of Western Australia The Art Gallery of Western Australia (AGWA) is a public art gallery that is part of the Perth Cultural Centre, in Perth. It is located near the Western Australian Museum and State Library of Western Australia and is supported and managed by the ...

Destiny Deacon
on Design & Art Australia Online