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RRP Australia $14.95
RRP Overseas $13.60


 

Encounter at Nagalarramba

Photographs by Axel Poignant with a commentary by Roslyn Poignant

Published by the National Library of Australia with the assistance of the Morris West Trust Fund

Axel Poignant's expedition to the Liverpool River, Arnhem Land, in 1952 set in motion one of the most remarkable diplomatic initiatives by Aborigines in the history of colonisation. Encounter at Nagalarramba is a splendid celebration of the quest for human dignity through mutual understanding.
Les Hiatt

During the six weeks that photographer Axel Poignant spent at Nagalarramba, events were guided by his three Aboriginal companions, the Mawng brothers - Lazarus, Lamilami and George Winunguj - and Joseph Mangkudja, who later became the senior Kunibidji landowner of present-day Maningrida, on the opposite side of the river. The story of the encounter, which culminated in a Rom ceremony for Axel, is traced in the central photographic narrative of over 200 photographs, which follows the chronology of Axel's diary.

Roslyn Poignant draws on Axel's journal and Aboriginal reflections to explore the dynamics of the 1952 encounter. She positions the narrative historically and considers the nature of photographic representation, drawing on insights provided by the community's response to Axel's photographs. As Roslyn writes: This book rests on the fragile bridge that both parties to the original encounter built. From this vantage point it attempts to look both ways: to address two audiences, Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal.

Reviews:

This pictorial and textual account of the Poignants’ diplomatic overtures in 1952, … is a perfect balance of discretion and revelation. Like a Greek chorus the reader is powerless but from the first page deeply involved.

Country Style, January 1997

Information on authors:

Australian writer and anthropologist Roslyn Poignant lives in London and has had a long association with the Royal Anthropological Institute. She was a 1994 Harold White Fellow at the National Library of Australia, and curated the exhibition Captive Lives — a National Library of Australia touring exhibition from 1997-2000.

Photographer Axel Poignant (1906-86) was best known for his splendid studies of the people and landscape of Australia. Axel was born in England, but emigrated to Australia in 1926.

ISBN 0 642 10665 7
1996, pb, 235 x 250 mm, 180 pp, b&w illus.

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Last updated 11 September 2000