Richard's works are described as 'totemic animal, dot application, cross hatching and traditional hand stencils' examining 'the historical treatment of Aboriginal people after European settlement'. These are seen as Richard's response to issues of oppression, frustration and discrimination.
Richard Believes that " … it is my job as an artist to test people's resolve, to provoke thought and that's what I do, I provoke thought and discussion."
I took interest in Richard Bell based on his morals and reasons for why he produces his art. His beliefs relate strongly to the topic that I wish to cover in my major essay. He once said; "White culture took away my tribal language and in return gave me a language that, on the social level, doesn't work." This relates to the information I researched on the way that Western civilisation has claimed ownership of Indigenous culture and history - Bell speaks from a first hand experience about how he has noticed the way non-Indigenous people have taken over his culture and forced them to conform, and for a lot of Indigenous people it is hurtful and provokes anger towards the white settlers.
Above: One Day You'll All Be Gone (Bell's Theorem) 2011
Bell uses his words incredibly well, although they may be quite confronting and would make many people feel uncomfortable, that is what makes them so successful. They cause a stir, and when something causes a stir, people tend to take notice and something can actually be done. His pieces target so many issues that Indigenous people face within society and they are so well known that people don't need many words to understand what Bell's pieces are implying. He targets the exploitation of Indigenous art in Australia, the stereotypes that have been forced upon Indigenous people without motif, and the way that western civilisation have taken over a land that they inhabited after another culture (as a few examples). The contrast in his work from the patchwork colours to the stark whites clearly represents the cultural divide between the Indigenous people and the non-Indigenous people of Australia. In some pieces is can be quite confronting as it seems to label us under one blanket colour - however, that is what non-Indigenous people tend to do to the Aborigine people - many class them as one body of people and don't acknowledge that they have their own colonies (like we have countries) and that each clan is vastly different. I greatly admire Richard Bell's ability to express his mind so openly through his artwork and I feel that we need more artists like him that actually try to make a difference in a bold, overpowering way that has been proven to work a lot more effectively than most campaigns that try and encourage positive behaviour etc.
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