Monga Khan AUSSIE

Date2016

Object number00055708

NamePoster

MediumPaper

DimensionsOverall: 1177 × 834 mm

ClassificationsArt

Credit LineAustralian National Maritime Museum Collection

Terms

DescriptionAn AUSSIE poster depicting an Exemption to the White Australia Policy photo of Victorian hawker Monga Khan by Adelaide street artist and activist Peter Drew. The ‘AUSSIE’ series was inspired by the collection of Certificates of Exemption from the Dictation Test (CEDT) held in the National Archives of Australia. The iconic image of Monga Khan was taken from his CEDT. Khan was born in India, but lived, worked and died in Australia. He was one of thousands of hawkers, cameleers and traders who were granted special permission to leave and re-enter Australia during the period of the White Australia policy, as their labour was considered essential to the nation’s growing economy.HistorySince 2013, Adelaide street artist and activist Peter Drew has been installing his handmade posters in public space to raise awareness of issues around immigration, asylum seekers and Australian identity. Drew says, 'The aim of my work over the last year has been to pose a question about the casual assumptions that underlie Australia's identity; does ‘Aussie’ describe the people who wrote the White Australia policy, or does ‘Aussie’ have more to do with the people who survived it? I see more to admire in the courage of those who chose to make Australia their home, despite the racial discrimination of its government.' Like many early migrants, little is known about the life of Monga Khan. Believed to have been born in British India, in the village of Batrohan, Punjab (located in the state of modern-day Haryana, India). Arriving in Australia in 1895 Monga Khan worked as a licensed hawker in Victoria, selling goods such as spices. He died in 1930 at the Ararat Hospital (rural Victoria), aged 68. SignificancePeter Drew uses the powerful medium of poster art to showcase hidden and marginalised histories in order to question, and consequently expand, the vision of national identity that dominates media representations and Australian folklore. Drew’s posters locate personal stories and lived experiences within a broader immigration policy framework, giving agency to figures such as Monga Khan as a survivor of the White Australia policy. This is a visually engaging, evocative example of poster art as protest art, and the emerging relationship between artists and activists in responding to Australia's changing immigration policies.