Carrolup Art Collection

John Curtin Gallery is the proud custodian of the Herbert Mayer Collection of Carrolup Artwork, a significant collection of drawings created in the 1940s by Aboriginal children who were forcibly removed from their families and held at the Carrolup Native Settlement.

The collection, which was held overseas for more than 50 years, provides opportunities for age-appropriate learning about First Nations art, Noongar Country, history, culture, identity, truth-telling and healing.

JCG offers learning experiences that respond to the Carrolup children’s artworks at our galleries.

Carrolup Art Collection: Classroom Learning

The Carrolup Art Collection can support classroom learning across Visual Arts, HASS, English and more. And it can be integrated into programs across multiple year levels.

Through this unique collection, students can explore Carrolup stories and histories, encouraging their curiosity to develop critical thinking and an understanding of culture, history, place and identity. The collection inspires creative responses and investigations into historical perspectives, allowing students to develop language and literacy skills, and promote thoughtful discussion about the world around them.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should be aware the exhibition and catalogue contains images, voices and names of people who have died. It also contains information that might be confronting and may cause distress.