Australiana

The Australian national flag
A cricket ball on the Australian flag. Cricket is a popular sport in Australia and a part of Australian culture.
A typical Australian meat pie with tomato sauce
Although its country of origin is a contentious issue, the pavlova is a part of the Australian identity and is commonly served at Christmas time.

Australiana is a term denoting items, people, places, flora, fauna and events of Australian origins. Anything pertaining to Australian culture, society, geography and ecology can fall under the term Australiana, especially if it is endemic to Australia. Australiana often borrows from Australian Aboriginal culture, or the stereotypical Australian culture of the early 1900s.

Objects can be Australiana in their own right, such as boomerangs, Akubra hats, and didgeridoos, or can be common objects with Australian cultural images displayed on them. Such items might include two-man saws, snow globes or tea towels with Australian scenery or icons imprinted on them in the national colours of Australia.

Australiana can also refer to art with an Australian style or subject. Paintings, ceramics, crafts and coins that depict Australian imagery would fall under this category.

These images are often well-known Australian animals and birds, such as kangaroos, koalas, the platypus, echidnas and budgerigars.

People are sometimes depicted in the artwork, such as Australian explorers, drovers, bushranger, swagmen, Australian Aborigines, diggers and the like.

Being on the beach in summer is also generally made out to be part of Australian, as well as Surf Life Savers, as Australia is a coastal culture, because of the nature of inland Australia (dry, harsh desert).

Some commercial brands have become part of Australiana due to their perceived "Australianness". Advertisements and posters depicting these brands often become part of Australiana as well. These include:[1]

Australiana has also been called a style of kitsch art.[2]

See also

References

  1. ↑ An article about Australia brands
  2. ↑ An article about Australiana
  • The Australiana Society publishes a quarterly magazine, Australiana, which features research on Australian art, decorative art, artifacts and history.
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