About Us

Robert

I was born in the late 1960's in far north western Queensland in a small country mining town called Mount Isa. I am the second youngest of five children in my immediate family but we also have a large extended family spread mainly throughout Queensland.

The Last Kalkadoon Warrior

I am a descendant of the Kalkadungu people that roamed and hunted in the hills surrounding Mount Isa. My dad, Alf Barton - a Kalkadungu Elder, was considered 'the last of the Kalkadoons' because he was the last full blood Kalkadungu left alive before he passed on in the mid 1990's. He was also the last fluent speaker of our home language Kalkatungu. Thankfully, dad passed a large part of his knowledge of country, lore and language on before he died through formal and informal means. During the early 90's the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies based at ANU in Canberra undertook a major language revival project with dad and now there are hundreds of pages of written text and almost 60 hours of audio recordings documenting our cultural property as result.

Alf Barton Traditional Elder "Last of the Kalkadoons"

Here is a portrait I painted of my dad (May 2007). The title of this work is 'Yudrrl' which means warrior. The medium is oil paints and printer's ink on linen.

Making a difference

My grandmother Daisy Barton, was something of a civil rights campaigner in the 1940's. Daisy, the single mother of seven children, worked as domestic for the local mayor and cinema owner at the time, Norm Smith. While in this position, she pushed for housing for the homeless, health care for the elderly and infirm, education of local Aboriginal children and lobbied the local member for the right to vote which she was granted in 1947.

Through our art, we try to make a difference. First by creating and supporting an understanding of Aboriginal culture and people through our art, helpingour many clients and friends to gain more insight into the historical and contemporary issues facing Indigenous communities. Its our path to Reconciliation using paints, brushes andcanvas. On another level, we've had the very special privilege of supporting several charities through our art including the Abused Child Trust, Planet Ark, and Mission Australia. Each year we donote at least 10% of our earnings to one or more local charities.

Little brothers and didjeridoos

My younger brother William Barton is a world renowned didjeridoo composer and performer. For many years now, William has been working with some of the worlds most exclusive orchestras, including the London Philharmonic, perfecting the use of the didjeridoo in harmony with western Classical music.

We often get William to open our exhibitions when he's in Australia. Coupled with my mother's traditional Aboriginal chanting and wailing. This makes for a memorable and deeply moving spiritual experience.