What does it mean to remember rebellion as heroism?
The ‘outlaw’ has long haunted cultural imaginations. A figure both revered and feared, the ‘outlaw’ is a symbol of resistance, rebellion and myth. But what do these mythic icons tell us about the societies that create them? Kelly & the Cowboys brings together artists grappling with national mythology through the lens of two infamous outlaw archetypes: Ned Kelly and the American cowboy.
 Adam Cullen - ‘Ned Kelly at Glenrowan (Stand and Deliver)’ |
 Adam Cullen - 'Kelly in Drag' |
In Australia and the United States, these figures loom large: both born of frontier violence, both transformed into cultural myths, romanticised as the unlikely heroes of national stories. But what truths do these myths conceal? From the bold, anarchic visions of Adam Cullen to the surreal world-building of Philippe Le Miere’s 'Alice in Kellyland', Ned Kelly is cast as an antihero. Straddling fantasy, history and the fractured Australian identity, reviled by authorities and lionised by the public, Kelly has come to represent the enduring Australian fascination with the underdog. Sidney Nolan’s 'The Trial' reminds us that Kelly has long been a vessel through which artists express national tension, while Clayton Tremlett’s introspective self-portraits blur personal identity with national myth.
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 Clayton Tremlett - 'Self Portrait as Ned Kelly aged fifty (There's a Ned in every crowd)' |
The cowboy, too, is interrogated, not as a lone ranger of freedom, but as a cinematic construct, glamorised and commodified. In Steve Rosendale’s 'Clint', we see the Hollywood actor so synonymous with cowboy not as a rugged pioneer, but as an emblem of stylised Americana: glossy, distant, and carefully constructed.
 Steve Rosendale - 'Westwood' |
These works expose how easily violence, resistance and heroism can be repackaged into national folklore. They are legends born of lawlessness, romanticised by societies grappling with their own origins. Together, the collection asks some uncomfortable questions: Who do we celebrate, and why? What happens when outlaws become idols? What does it mean to remember rebellion as heroism? And, importantly, what do these myths say about us, their creators?
Top: Adam Cullen - 'Joe Byrne (Kelly Gang)'
Bottom: Adam Cullen - 'Wild Isaiah Wright 1876 (Kelly Gang)'
Emma Shaw is an emerging curator currently completing her graduate studies at the University of Melbourne. Inspired by a recent trip to America’s south, she explores frontier mythology in this selection of works.
Philippe Le Miere - ‘Alice, Kelly and Family’
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