Confront Tasmania’s convict history through death masks of executed criminals created according to the 19th century pseudo-science of phrenology which sought to decipher an individual’s personality traits and criminal proclivities through the shape of their skull.
As part of Dark Mofo 2017, Brigita Ozolins will stage a highly theatrical tableau within Narryna’s exhibition rooms. A central draped showcase containing a mysterious object will be surrounded by a series of light boxes containing images of phrenological masks of executed convicts from Tasmania, Norfolk Island and New South Wales.
An adjacent room will contain actual death masks, medical models, phrenological instruction busts and instruction manuals.
Throughout the event, Narryna’s façade will be illuminated with a projection of the hexafoil, a pre-Christian symbol to ward off evil. A festival bar will be provided in Narryna’s forecourt, and tours of the house will also be available throughout the event.
Image details: Beattie Studios, Beattie’s Port Arthur Museum, Hobart, c. 1914. Collection, Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery
Brigita Ozolins
Visual artists
