Writing Lines
What did these nails hold on the wall of the Commissariat in Oatlands, Tasmania?
It’s day one of my residency in Oatlands, Tasmania and I’ve spent the afternoon walking around the town, getting my bearings.
Oatlands is a colonial town in what is called the ‘heartlands’ of Tasmania. Its full of old settler buildings, many made from sandstone that are well preserved and restored to give visitors a glimpse into the town’s history.
I’m stationed in the AIRstudio which is a beautiful old house directly in front of the Commissariat. This was the place where supplies were stored for the settlers, military and convicts. Most disturbing is the history of the area written in plain sight. The lists of items stored in this building for the incarceration of convicts and extermination of the Tasmanian Aborigines.
In her book Tasmanian Aborigines: a history since 1803, author Lyndall Ryan cites that the stores included “1,000 stands of arms, 30,000 rounds of cartridge and 300 sets of handcuffs”.
The historical documents in the Commissariat show the notorious Black Line; the human chain of soldiers and civilians formed to drive the Tasmanian Aborigines south into the Tasman peninsular where they could be rounded up and sent to islands away from the Tasmanian mainland.
It’s got me thinking about lines. Those that you make with a brush or pencil, those that are metaphorical.
When I was listing them in my head, these lines became powerful.
Bottom line
Line in the sand
Toe the line
Don’t step out of line…. and the list goes on.
I think of the lines we were forced to write as punishment for misdemeanours at school, staying back in recess or lunch to write out 100 lines.
I will not….[insert here the misdemeanour].
Then I think of these lines and the dark history here in the heart of Tasmania.
I will not turn away
I will not toe the line
I will draw the line…
Rear view of the Oatlands AIRstudio taken from the Commissariat building.
