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Freda Wilson (Dcsd.) |
 (Dcsd. July 2004) The following is transcript of recorded interview with Freda Wilson on 10th February 2002. The Gallery has very few of Fredas works left however, she was a clever artist, wonderful lady and we feel her story is important. P: Hi, Freda how are you? Freda: Good P: Good O.K. whats new? What you been doing? F: oh, nothing. P. Well, wed better find out a bit about you for your story. Where were you born, love? F. Ivanhoe. P. Ivanhoe Station? Yes and did you stay there for very long? F. Yes I grew up there. P. Did you work there? F. Yeah. P. What doing? F. Working housework in the kitchen cookin. P. Who was Boss there? F. When I was a little one it was Norman Bridge and his wife Thelma then they changed bosses when that house got burnt. P. Right were you there when the house got burnt? F. Yeah I was little kid. P. And was it totally burnt nothing left? F. Yes P. Freda, how did it happen? F. Something went wrong in the house. P. But you were living outside the house. F. Yep camping in Humpy. P. So no-one was hurt? F. No no-one hurt. P. Then they rebuilt that station didnt they? F. Yes built new station. P. Different place? F. Yes la river now near the river. P. And where did you go after Ivanhoe? F. We stayed till we were big big people worked on new station. P. And you liked working there they were good to you? F. Yeah Yeah. P. And when did you leave Ivanhoe? F. When Kununurra started but went to Wyndham first. P. Were you married then? F. Noooo P. You still young girl? F. Yeah couple of kids but not husband! P. How many kids you got? F. Six. Theyre all big now. Theres Ethel (eldest), and Gina, JuJu, Annie, Peter and one other boy. P. And your Mum painted? F. She used to. Long ago. A hundred years ago! P. So your Mum, Sheba her name is (F., yes), and you paint, and JuJu Paints, and Annie paints, and JuJus little girl paints. F. Yes. P. So thats FOUR generations of painters. F. Yes, thats right. P. All still painting now except Sheba. F. Yes, she cant see now (note Sheba is over 90 years). P. Did you teach the kids to paint, or did they just learn? F. They just learnt from watching me doing it. P. Freda, you Boss for Emu Creek now? F. Yes. P. And you like it out there? F. Yes, Yes I been there for ten years. P. What were you doing when you were up in Wyndham just sitting down? F. I used to work at Six Mile Hotel. P. Oh, thats right for Sam and Maggie Lilly after they sold Bow River. F. And for Geoff the next one. P. And what were you doing at the Hotel? F. Cleaning up in the kitchen (note Freda now smiling obviously fond memories). P. And you like painting? F. Yes, I do. P. And you need painting to get you enough money. F. Yes, and to make me forget about everything. P. And you paint stories - F. Yes - P. And your Turtles I like those one Turtles. Freda laughs. P. And you paint all different styles. F. Yes, but all the same. (note Freda means all the same stories but in different styles.) P. And you paint in the ochre? F. Yes ochre - the rock. P. And sometimes you use kartiya glue, and sometimes you use tree resin F. yes, gum boil him up. P. Then you mix him up and paint with brush. F. Yes. P. But you can draw, too. F. Yup P. I can see that in your paintings and this is what makes a really good painter like Jack Britten can draw, and young Susan Widaldjil can draw and that makes the difference Freda nods in agreement. P. And JuJu can draw - hey, Ive got some proper good didgeridoos from Juju - Freda laughs P. Did you used to make them? F. Yes, hard now tho too much rain. P. Do you have to get certain sort of wood? F. Yes cabbage gum because when you cut em they already hollow. P. In old times, did the women make most of the didgeridoos? F. Yeah, but men make them too. P. Right men make spears, women make coolamons. Freda, did you go through law and collect bush tucker in coolamons and all that? F. Yeah, thats all we were livin on. P. Thats what you were livin on when you were little girl. F. Yeah no tea, sugar, nothing. P. Till the station people gave you those. F. Till Durack bin come. P. So he gave you flour, tea, tobacco. F. Yeah when people bin quieten down. P. And did you get along well with the bosses on the stations were they O.K. F. Yeah yeah. P. And you were well looked after. Freda nods. P. The stockmen and their families were well looked after. F. Yeah! P. How often did you used to get rations twice a week? F. Saturday. We worked Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, then sitdown Saturday sometimes Sunday then work again. P. On talking with Maggie Lilly about the times at Bow River, she tells me at Christmas time they used to put on big party for their people. F. Used to tie their legs and run. P. Oh, the three legged race. Freda now laughing. And they put their legs in bag and run. P. Yep the sack race thats called. (Freda then described the Egg and Spoon race and other Australian games.) P. And they put on a big feed for you. F. Yep Christmas cake with five cent sixpences in it. Two big Christmas cakes and they used to kill a big fat sheep and a nanny goat. P. Then after Wyndham you came to Kununurra. F. Yes, after about four years. P. Some people went from Wyndham to Turkey Creek but they were mainly Kitja people, werent they. You Mirrawong? Freda nods - yep. P. So the Kitja Peple went to Turkey Creek and the Mirrawong people to Kununurra? F But they dont know where to go now! They just go everywhere. Families used to go on holidays walk from Ivanhoe to Newry. P. Thats a long way. F. Yeah walk and camp till we get there. P. Holiday time was Wet Season? Freda Wilson - The story Continued.............. |
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One of the unique skills Artists from the Kimberely region possess is the ability to mix the natural ochre pigments to create truly spectacular colours, shadings and effects that give ochre artworks a uniqueness unseen in any other style of art anywhere in the world.
