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Information Services@ANU > ANU Archives Exhibitions ANU Archives ExhibitionsAt the Australian National University we care for thousands of documents of all kinds in the University Archives and the Noel Butlin Archives Centre - maps, diaries, company and trade union records, journals, photographs, sound recordings and more. When in Canberra, you can view some of these records in unique exhibitions at the Noel Butlin Archives Centre and other locations around the city. We often lend material for exhibitions at other locations such as the National Archives and Old Parliament House. Exhibitions held here are free and open on weekdays from 9 am to 5 pm. For information on location, please see Location and Facilities. Current exhibitionHard LabourJuly - December 2008 Hard Labour depicts the manual labour of man and beast: hauling timber, wool and wheat, hard at work on the land, on the waterfront and in mines and factories. It features the work of Harold Cazneaux, Sam Hood, Noel Rubie and many anonymous recorders of working conditions from the 1880s to the 1930s from the collections of Adelaide Steamship, Dunlop Rubber, Unilever, Tooth and Company, Dalgety Australia, CSR Limited and the Waterside Workers Federation. This exhibition coincides with the Vivid: National Photography Festival with one hundred exhibitions in fifty venues around Canberra. For more information see the Vivid website. Some past exhibitionsThe Colonial Sugar Refining Company Limited: Sugarcane Growing and Milling in Fiji 1881–1974January - June 2008 Rub a dub dubJuly - December 2007 Rub a dub dub The records of Lever Brothers Pty Ltd, W H Burford & Sons Ltd and J Kitchen & Sons Pty Ltd featured in this exhibition are part of the Unilever Australasia collection held by the Noel Butlin Archives Centre. They help provide an insight into the early development of the soap manufacturing industry in Australia in the twentieth century. Australian National University: 60 yearsJuly - December 2006 To celebrate the 60th anniversary of the University this display of the ANU campus features the many buildings named after people. Who were they and what was their role at the ANU? The buildings bear the names of Chancellors (Bruce, Cockcroft, Coombs, Crawford and Baume), Vice-Chancellors (Copland, Melville, Huxley, Crawford, and Karmel), founders (Hancock and Oliphant) and other University staff (Griffin, Hope and Neumann). It includes photographs and documents from the University Archives collection. 75 Years of Achievement - Worth Fighting ForMay - July 2006 In the early 1930s many unionists saw the need for coordinated action in both industrial relations and political arenas if working and living conditions in Canberra were to be improved. As a result, representatives of ten unions met at the Parks and Gardens Cottage, Acton, on 16 April 1931. This was the inaugural meeting of the Trades and Labour Council of the Federal Capital Territory (later to become the Australian Capital Territory). In 2002 this collective organisation representing trade unions in the Australian Capital Territory changed its name to Unions ACT. On its 75th anniversary the story of Unions ACT and the many services and programs it provides is told in this display of historical records of the ACT Trades and Labour Council held by the Noel Butlin Archives Centre. Archives in ActionMarch - May 2006 Did you know that the collections of the Noel Butlin Archives Centre are used to:
and that poetry and songs from the collection are performed at the National Folk Festival? Displayed in this exhibition are examples of what can be produced from the many historical documents held by the Noel Butlin Archives Centre and the University Archives. Early Labour Movement in CanberraNovember 2005 - February 2006 This exhibition featured records about the development of the labour movement in Canberra including the minute books of some of the earliest unions established in Canberra including the United Operative Bricklayers Trade Society, the Transport Workers Union of Australia, and the Amalgamated Society of Carpenters and Joiners. The Canberra branch of the Australian Labor Party was established in 1930 and was instrumental in setting up the Trades and Labour Council in April 1931. Later documents, including copies of documents held by the National Library of Australia and the Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales, chart the efforts of the ALP, ACT Branch to gain autonomy from the NSW Branch, finally achieved in 1971. The exhibition also presented memorabilia and promotional material from the Inaugural Conference of the ALP, ACT Branch in 1973. The 8-hour dayAugust - October 2005 2005 marks the 150th anniversary of the establishment of the Sydney '8-hours Committee' which campaigned for eight hours 'work, rest and recreation'. This small display featured parade banners, posters, programs and photographs of 8-hour day celebrations. Unchartered WatersJuly - October 2005 Greg Mallory's recent book Uncharted Waters: Social responsibility in Australian trade unions examines the political theories and movements that influenced two disputes - the boycott on pig iron by the Waterside Workers Federation of Australia on the Dalfram at Port Kembla, 1938 and the refusal by the NSW Builders Labourers Federation to demolish buildings and destroy parkland in parts of Sydney. The book was launched by Jack Mundey (former Secretary of the NSW BLF) at the Archives on 26 July 2005. Documents and pamphlets from the Noel Butlin Archives Centre were sourced for this small exhibition from the following collections:
The Petrov AffairAugust 2004 – April 2005 The exhibition marked the 50th anniversary of the Petrov Affair, tracking the key events of the Petrov Affair, Australia’s greatest spy story. The Affair had a profound and lasting impact on the fabric of Australian society and directly contributed to the Labor Party Split of 1955. Several items from the Noel Butlin Archives Centre were included. For more information, please see: http://www.oph.gov.au/petrov/content.asp. Tooth & Company Limited collectionJuly - December 2004 This small exhibition of Canberra and district hotels gave just a sample of the photographs held. As well as photographs, the Tooth & Company Limited deposit includes hotel files which are administrative records of the Property Office, Architects and City and Country Managers Offices. These are the major reference files for information on new license applications, the day to day management of hotels, general matters, and all lease and property dealings for Tooth's hotels (and some other properties) over approximately sixty years, c1920-1980. File titles are the names of the hotels, arranged alphabetically for Sydney city and suburban hotels. For country hotels, the files are organised alphabetically by the name of towns and then by the name of the hotels in each town. To see more of our photos from the Tooth & Company Limited collection, go to the University's digital repository at demetrius.anu.edu.au and insert the word 'hotel' in the search bar. Dare to Struggle, Dare to Win!May - July 2004 A new book on the history of the Builders Labourers Federation, Dare to Struggle, Dare to Win! Builders Labourers fight deregistration, 1981-1994 by Liz Ross (Vulgar Press) was launched on 5 May 2004 at the Archives. The launch was accompanied by the opening of an exhibition which includes records, posters and photographs from the BLF archives held at the Noel Butlin Archives Centre. The People's Procession: Popular Australian Movements 1880s-1950sDecember 2003 - July 2004 This exhibiton tells the stories of Australian democracy in action from the hey-day of the Eight Hours Day processions of the 1880s to the Ban the Bomb rallies of the 1950s. Many original items are drawn from the Noel Butlin Archives Centre including banners used in parades, posters, pamphlets, handbooks, letters and photographs. For more information, please see: http://www.oph.gov.au/content.asp?pageID=114 History of the JB Chifley Library, ANUMay - June 2003 As part of the celebrations on the completion of refurbishment of the JB Chifley Library, an exhibition was produced by the University Archives, embracing the life of the library, both as a physical structure and as a resource for students, academics and other staff to draw on. With the original proposals for the new library, Professor Denis Winston, the University's site consultant, drew up a development plan. Professor Winston indicated the site for the General Studies Library and referred to it as the future heart of the University. The design and construction is tracked with the aid of a visual time line created from photographs of the building process. The course from the initial Architectural Design Brief to the completion of the second stage concludes with the official opening in 1969. This time line forms the backbone of the exhibition as its role in the life of the ANU is explored, beginning with the contentious decision by Prime Minister Menzies to amalgamate the Canberra University College and the Australian National University in 1960. 'For economy, pleasure, health': Images of early Australian cyclingFebruary - July 2003 In February, the Noel Butlin Archives Centre participated in the 14th International Cycle History Conference held in Canberra by presenting an exhibition of unique documents, rare photographs and selected advertisements concerning Australian cycling in the 1890s and early 1900s. The conference, primarily organised by the Canberra Bicycle Museum, was held over three days from 24-26 February 2003 and featured speakers from Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Japan, England and Germany. The topics of presented papers ranged from 'Cycling in Geelong 1869-1930' to 'Women's fashion in the nineteenth century' to 'Japanese derailleurs'. The conference enabled the Archives to display its bicycle related material to a keen group of cycle historians and researchers. The exhibition, entitled 'For economy, pleasure, health': Images of early Australian cycling, explored the contribution of cycling to Australian work, transport, sport and leisure in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It also touched on the Dunlop Pneumatic Tyre Company's early association with Australian cycling. Material was featured from a number of NBAC's collections. Most prominent were records from the collection of Dunlop Rubber (Australia) Ltd which, under its earlier name of the Dunlop Pneumatic Tyre Company, introduced the 'pneumatic' air-filled tyre to Australia in the early 1890s. The exhibition included photographs and documents from other company and union collections, including Goldsbrough Mort & Co., the Australian Agricultural Company, CSR Ltd, the Australian Postal and Telecommunications Union and the Australian Federated Union of Locomotive Enginemen. Material was also displayed from 1890s and early 1900s editions of the Australasian, Dalgety's Review, the Bulletin, and the Worker. John Dunlop's early pneumatic tyre faced much ridicule and scepticism. People were accustomed to thin solid rubber tyres rather than the thick air filled 'sausages'. However, cyclists quickly converted to the faster and more comfortable pneumatic tyre. The introduction of the 'pneumatic' to Australia greatly increased the use of bicycles for leisure, work and transport in both the country and city. During the late 1890s and early 1900s, many shepherds, boundary riders, miners, shearers, station managers, clergymen, teachers, messengers and postal workers adopted the bike as an efficient means of transport. In some instances, unions had to negotiate specific rates of pay for workers who used bikes at work or special arrangements for those who cycled to and from the workplace. Bicycle racing and the pursuit of long distance records also became a fad and Dunlop emerged as a prominent sponsor of bicycle racing in Australia. Pearl Shells & other ShellsDecember 2002 - January 2003 A small exhibit on the history of men's use of decorative properties of sea shells, featuring three carved pearl shells from the collection of Burns, Philp & Co Ltd. Archives as Works of ArtJuly - August 2002 This exhibition addressed a very specific value that archival records can have. Archives are not preserved for the way they look, but rather for the way they document our lives. The exhibition showed that despite this, archival records can have artistic merit, and displayed the best examples from the collections of the University Archives and Noel Butlin Archives Centre. We would like to thank Ms Jennifer Gason for her valuable assistance in arranging this exhibition. With kind thoughts and best wishes … Season’s greetings at ChristmasDecember 2001 - January 2002 This exhibition included a Christmas card to the South Australian Advertiser chapel of the Printing & Kindred Industries Union from Horace Yelland, 1911 (PKIU, E216/18). The Challenge of Progress: ANU in 1951August - October 2001 The launch of this exhibition marked the creation of the ANU Archives Program, which brought together the University Archives and the Noel Butlin Archives Centre under the leadership of Dr Sigrid McCausland, University Archivist. Rarely seen items from the University Archives focused on the ANU community fifty years ago. The first part of the exhibition’s title comes from an address given by the then ANU Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sir Douglas Copland, on 28 January 1951. Wine! An Australian Social HistoryApril - July 2001 A variety of items from two Noel Butlin Archives Centre collections, Lindeman (Holdings) Ltd and Burns, Philp & Co Ltd, were used in this exhibition at the National Archives of Australia. Historical photographs, wine labels and advertisements helped to explore the nature and evolution of the wine industry in Australia. For more information, please see http://www.naa.gov.au/exhibitions/wine/wine.html The Rural EntrepreneursOctober 2000 This exhibition accompanied the launch of Simon Ville’s book The rural entrepreneurs: A history of the stock and station agent industry in Australia and New Zealand (Cambridge; New York: Cambridge University Press, 2000). The book drew heavily on the pastoral collections held at the Noel Butlin Archives Centre. Unique items presented in the exhibition illustrated the history of the stock and station industry as presented in the book. Australians at Play: Picnics, Sports and Olympic FeverAugust - October 2000 This exhibition was prepared as part of the ANU Library's Two Millionth Book Celebrations, and was launched by the speaker of the ACT Legislative Assembly, Greg Cornwell. It sought to explore the roles of sport, leisure and spectatorship in Australian life, particularly as they relate to work. The exhibition drew on the Centre's extensive collections of company and trade union records. Through the items on display, viewers were invited to join company and trade union members in a picnic pillow fight, a race between married and single ladies, a cricket match with the CSR Chief Chemist going out to bat, and many other thrilling sporting occasions. Sub-themes included cycling in Australia, leisure activities on a pastoral station and, of course, the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. In the South Seas: Landscapes and FacesJune - July 2000 This exhibition was prepared to coincide with the Millennial Conference of the Pacific History Association, which was held in June 2000. It contained rarely displayed photographs from the records of Burns Philp & Co Ltd held at the Noel Butlin Archives Centre. The exhibition’s main focus was to explore the ancient lyrical motif of the 'Happy Isles', as seen by a European traveller of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The selection of items took the viewers 'on a poetic journey through the literary allusions and photographic images of the Pacific islands'. That Voluminous Squatter: WE Abbott, WingenJune - August 1999 This exhibition accompanied the launch of John Merritt’s book That voluminous squatter (Bungendore, NSW: Turalla Press, 1999) - a biography of William Abbott, prominent NSW pastoralist and an avid member of the Pastoralists Union of NSW. During the turbulent 1890s Abbot led employers' resistance to the Amalgamated Shearers Union, and later served the Pastoralists Union as its President for more than 15 years. The exhibition documented the heated conflict between shearers and their employers, using items from the NBAC collections of the NSW Farmers Association (successor of the Pastoralists Union) and the Australian Workers Union (successor of the Amalgamated Shearers Union). |
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