Emu egg carving is an ancient tradition evolved over millennia from the early etched emu eggs, used as water carriers, carved, using an implement such as a mussel shell, to signify ownership, to the rich and diverse beauty of the carved eggs of today. Emu egg carving has stood the test of time through colonisation and white intrusion into black culture, and assimilation policies aimed at ‘whiting out’ the black in Australia. Emu egg carving has continued resiliently to transform itself and survive as a tradition to be passed on to the next generation of carvers.
Egg carvers such as the four artists in the exhibition Carved out of Life, the first ever Indigenous exhibition at Craft Victoria, are custodians of a practice and tradition that has been almost forgotten in the art world and mainstream Australian culture. Carved eggs have been often seen in the past as kitschy Australiana tourist souvenirs. This has resulted in great misunderstanding, lack of knowledge and lack of collected oral history about the practice of egg carving. The study of egg carving has been neglected; there is little written about carving and little public knowledge of the carvers of the early and mid twentieth century many of whom lived on missions and in camps, carving eggs to make extra income to feed their families. These early eggs were usually severely underpriced considering their real worth, though now eggs by some highly recognised and skilled carvers can fetch into the tens of thousands of dollars with eggs by a little known carver bringing $300-$600. Most eggs are not dated or signed by the artist; it is left up to the unique style and technique of the carver to identify them.
Because egg carving usually comes from a family tradition passed between family members you can often observe visual connections in their similar techniques, styles and craftsmanship between a carver of today and their ancestors. Esther Kirby, represented in the exhibition, is such an artist carrying on a family name and practice. Her father, the late Sam Kirby, is one of Australia’s most renowned and recognised carvers. His work is in private and public collections around the world with two of his eggs in the private royal collection at Buckingham Palace, London. Sam Kirby personally presented the eggs to the newly crowned Queen Elizabeth at the Pioneer Settlement in Swan Hill Victoria in 1956.
Like her father, Esther Kirby is one of Australia’s most renowned and highly skilled carvers. Esther lives on country where she is connected to the surroundings that she carves into her eggs, images of fish, and bird life and of her mythology and Aboriginal identity. Carving country into eggs Esther displays her cultural uniqueness and like other carvers she bears and carries her family responsibilities in her carving. Esther has said that being an egg carver comes with a great responsibility to uphold your name, do the best you can, and give pride to the elders who taught you.
Egg carving is not just a hobby or a craft, it is a way of life. Ranging from the highest ‘head carvers’ down to beginners in carving, this art form in the past has been mainly a male dominated practice, but these days we have more women carvers taking part, such as Esther and Lucy Williams Connelly, who is also in the exhibition.
Lucy, who is in her 70s, is related to the Kirby family. Like Esther, Lucy was encouraged and inspired by Sam Kirby, who later in life taught her the fine skills of carving. Lucy told me that since she retired she has the patience and the time to carve. Lucy is also an artist of basketry, painting and poker work. She makes her work where she lives in Swan Hill, and creates and gathers her materials from the natural resources of her surroundings. Though the pine needles she works with are of a European variety of she makes baskets using a traditional South Eastern Australian coil method. Sometimes her eggs are placed in her baskets, becoming a sculptural piece.
The third artist in the exhibition, Adrian Morgan, is the youngest in the show. Adrian was taught and inspired in his early teens by his father whom he emulated. Now in his forties, Adrian is an established and well regarded carver and, like his father, the late Keith Morgan, Adrian’s style of carving is inventive and contemporary. He has ventured into carving horoscope signs and football emblems onto his eggs, at the same time displaying ancient knowledge and connection to country. Keith Morgan was also inspired by the late Sam Kirby to carve. Adrian lives and works in Bairnsdale Victoria.
The final artist in the exhibition is Brian Cavanagh. Brian is from the Waurnarua people of the Hunter Valley New South Wales. He grew up in Redfern, Sydney. At an early age Brian was on the road with his grandfather, a minister. They travelled to countless locations across the country. Brian came across many Aboriginal art practices, such as egg carving, making boomerangs and shields that have been part of his learning process on the way to inventing new ways of creating the old, such as fibreglass and copper shields. He also has new ways of presenting carved eggs. Brian is a practicing church minister in the Sunraysia region, Northern Victoria and his style of carving derives from his religious and spiritual background. Brian lives and works in Robinvale, Victoria.
There is a common thread that runs through these carvers’ veins. They descend from the first people to carve an emu egg for the purpose of carrying water and who created carved eggs purely for aesthetics as well as for ceremonial use. Their knowledge and skill have been kept to ensure future connection to place and country and to keep memory of time. This practically unknown art form and its history and stories can no longer be ignored for they carry life into future generations.
The exhibition Carved out of Life would not exist without remembering the people before us who kept the art of emu egg carving alive, individuals such as our old ‘head carvers’ Billy Reid, Joe Walsh, Hilton Walsh, Sam Kirby, and Bill Onus to mention a few. Carved out of Life is a story carved out of time that takes us on a new journey into the future.
Clinton Nain is the curator of Carved out of Life. He is an artist and lives and works in Melbourne.
Carved out of Life celebrates Craft Victoria’s 40th anniversary in 2010. The exhibition runs from June 17 to July 24 at Craft Victoria, 31 Flinders Lane, Melbourne. It is proudly supported by the Indigenous Arts Grant Program, City of Melbourne.
