'This thesis examines the role of the Antipodeans within the construction of Australian art history from 1956 to 1962. This thesis seeks to address some of the circumstances and myths that surround the Antipodeans and the infamous Antipodean Manifesto. The Antipodeans comprised the artists, Charles Blackman, Arthur Boyd, David Boyd, John Brack, Bob Dickerson, John Perceval and Clifton Pugh, along with the art historian Bernard Smith. This thesis re-examines the pivotal role the group played in the critical construct that located the Antipodeans’ defence of the figurative ‘image’ in Melbourne, in opposition to the apparent dominance of abstract painting in Sydney. Within this construct, the stand made by the Antipodeans presented a crucial reference point, which retrospectively validated specific events in the build-up to 1959, as well as provided the impetus for future incidents subsequently interwoven into the narrative. The inclusion of Sydney artist Robert Dickerson and potter-turned-painter David Boyd as Antipodeans is addressed in detail. The thesis argues that the critical reception of Robert Dickerson and David Boyd as individual artists, in contrast to their reception as members of the Antipodeans, highlights the exclusions, contradictions and anomalies within the narrative constructed around the Antipodeans, which undermines its authority as defining the history of Australia art at this time.' (Thesis description)
