2020 marked the 250th anniversary of Captain James Cook’s Endeavour voyage along the East Coast of this continent, beginning at Tolywiarar (Point Hicks) in April 1770. Kate Golding’s Near this spot uses sites in Narrm (Melbourne) such as Cooks’ Cottage, and the Captain Cook statue in Euro-Yroke (St Kilda), to challenge the settler colonial reverence for Cook’s legacy. Golding’s re-evaluation of Cook’s presence in history confronts the ongoing celebration of this divisive figure in a country that continues to ignore the unceded sovereignty of the First Nations people.

Commissioned by Photo Australia for PHOTO 2021

Support by the City of Melbourne Arts Grants Program