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National Film and Sound Archive
National Film and Sound Archive
National Film and Sound Archive

Archie Roach portrait

1990

Archie Roach portrait

1990

  • NFSA IDGM61ACTH
  • TypeDocumentation
  • MediumDocumentation
  • FormStill Image
  • GenresIndigenous themes or stories, Indigenous as subject
  • Year1990
  • WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander viewers are advised that the following program may contain images and/or audio of deceased persons

This stark black-and-white portrait of Archie Roach, taken by music photographer Tony Mott, is absolutely arresting.

It resembles a piece of photojournalism, capturing a fleeting moment on an unidentified street. The technique of blurring the background used here renders the immediate physical context of the photo unimportant compared with the emotion in Archie's face.

The image was taken as a publicity shot for Hightone Records in California before Archie embarked on a tour of the United States in the early 1990s.

Notes by Beth Taylor and Adam Blackshaw

  • WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander viewers are advised that the following program may contain images and/or audio of deceased persons

This stark black-and-white portrait of Archie Roach, taken by music photographer Tony Mott, is absolutely arresting.

It resembles a piece of photojournalism, capturing a fleeting moment on an unidentified street. The technique of blurring the background used here renders the immediate physical context of the photo unimportant compared with the emotion in Archie's face.

The image was taken as a publicity shot for Hightone Records in California before Archie embarked on a tour of the United States in the early 1990s.

Notes by Beth Taylor and Adam Blackshaw

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