PROJECTS
THE COLONY
The first female convicts arrived in Australia in 1803. The last ship containing female convicts arrived in 1853.
Women transported to Australia were sentenced for petty crimes like theft. They faced harsh conditions and were often assigned to work in places like Female Factories where women were given tasks such as weaving, sewing and laundry.
In this project I felt deeply for these women and I wanted to show how resilient, stoic and strong they were. Many eventually made a much better life for their children and I love that.
PORTRAITS OF CONVICT WOMEN
Punishment at the Factory included hard labour, rock breaking, picking oakum (tarred fibres used for sealing gaps), solitary confinement and wearing a ‘heavy iron’ or a cap of disgrace. Hair cutting was also used as a punishment to humiliate and degrade the women.
The Factory classed women as either 1st class awaiting assignment; 2nd class minor offence, pregnancy or having child with them or 3rd – penitentiary class for serious crime and repeated bad behaviour such as insolence.
Women could be promoted or demoted depending on their conduct.
The factories were sometimes a haven where women were safe and provided with work, board and food.
This drawing is about the uncertainty the women must have faced on a daily basis.
Women with children were separated once a child reached the tender age of 3 years. children were sent to Orphan Schools nearby.
These women played a crucial role in the development of the colony. Their resilience and contributions are a testament to their strength and determination.
Marriage and employment provided stability and respectability to the convict women. Many wanted a better future for their children and they worked hard to keep them healthy, clean and well clothed. Often, the convict women taught their children reading, writing and arithmetic at home.
These are my final works from “The Colony” project. I wanted to show the women as strong and resilient yet feminine and accepting of their life in a colony so far away from their homelands and families.
