Roland Robinson (poet)
Encyclopedia
Roland Edward Robinson OAM
(12 June 1912 – 8 February 1992) was an Australia
n poet and writer.
Robinson was born in County Clare
, Ireland
in 1912. At the age of 9, in 1921 he was brought to Australia
. After only a brief education he worked in various jobs, mainly in the bush as a roustabout, boundary-rider, railway fettler, fencer, dam-builder, gardener and as a lifelong love - a ballet dancer.
Robinson's first published poetry appeared in Beyond the Grass-Tree Spears published in 1944. He served in the Australian Army
. His love of the Australian landscape and everyday scenes were inspiration for his poetry. He was one of the most dedicated poets to the Jindyworobak Movement
.
As well as a writer and poet, Robinson was dance critic for The Sydney Morning Herald
in the 1950s and 1960s. In the 1940s he took classes with Helene Kirsova
and appeared in a number of productions by the Kirsova Ballet.
Robinson was a distinguished poet and writer who spent his later years in Lake Macquarie. He was a magical storyteller; his booming, lyrical voice, and shock of white flowing hair inspired and excited his audiences. Children sat spellbound by his aboriginal tales and wonderful verses. After his death in 1992, Lake Macquarie City Council established The Roland Robinson Literary Award, an annual award to honour Robinson's contribution to literature and culture, and to foster creative literary talent in the city.
In 1997, Lake Macquarie
City Council named the new library at Belmont
in his honour.
Robinson worked very closely with Aboriginal people from all over Australia writing down their myths. Perhaps his most important work was conducted with various Aboriginal people from the New South Wales. In particular his collaboration with Percy Mumbulla of the Yuin people.
Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...
(12 June 1912 – 8 February 1992) was an Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n poet and writer.
Robinson was born in County Clare
County Clare
-History:There was a Neolithic civilisation in the Clare area — the name of the peoples is unknown, but the Prehistoric peoples left evidence behind in the form of ancient dolmen; single-chamber megalithic tombs, usually consisting of three or more upright stones...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
in 1912. At the age of 9, in 1921 he was brought to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. After only a brief education he worked in various jobs, mainly in the bush as a roustabout, boundary-rider, railway fettler, fencer, dam-builder, gardener and as a lifelong love - a ballet dancer.
Robinson's first published poetry appeared in Beyond the Grass-Tree Spears published in 1944. He served in the Australian Army
Australian Army
The Australian Army is Australia's military land force. It is part of the Australian Defence Force along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. While the Chief of Defence commands the Australian Defence Force , the Army is commanded by the Chief of Army...
. His love of the Australian landscape and everyday scenes were inspiration for his poetry. He was one of the most dedicated poets to the Jindyworobak Movement
Jindyworobak Movement
The Jindyworobak Movement was a nationalistic Australian literary movement whose white members sought to promote indigenous Australian ideas and customs, particularly in poetry. They were active from the 1930s to around the 1950s...
.
As well as a writer and poet, Robinson was dance critic for The Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald is a daily broadsheet newspaper published by Fairfax Media in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1831 as the Sydney Herald, the SMH is the oldest continuously published newspaper in Australia. The newspaper is published six days a week. The newspaper's Sunday counterpart, The...
in the 1950s and 1960s. In the 1940s he took classes with Helene Kirsova
Hélène Kirsova
Hélène Kirsova was a Danish ballerina, choreographer, and director who started the first professional ballet company in Australia. Kirsova was born in Copenhagen as Ellen Elisabeth Kiersten Wittrup. In Denmark, she received ballet training from Emilie Walborn and Jenny Møller. She continued her...
and appeared in a number of productions by the Kirsova Ballet.
Robinson was a distinguished poet and writer who spent his later years in Lake Macquarie. He was a magical storyteller; his booming, lyrical voice, and shock of white flowing hair inspired and excited his audiences. Children sat spellbound by his aboriginal tales and wonderful verses. After his death in 1992, Lake Macquarie City Council established The Roland Robinson Literary Award, an annual award to honour Robinson's contribution to literature and culture, and to foster creative literary talent in the city.
In 1997, Lake Macquarie
Lake Macquarie
The City of Lake Macquarie is a Local Government Area in New South Wales, Australia, approximately north of Sydney. It is immediately adjacent to the city of Newcastle and was proclaimed as a city from 7 September 1984.-The City of Lake Macquarie:...
City Council named the new library at Belmont
Belmont, New South Wales
Belmont is a suburb in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia, located 20 kilometres from Newcastle's central business district on the eastern side of Lake Macquarie and is part of the City of Lake Macquarie....
in his honour.
Robinson worked very closely with Aboriginal people from all over Australia writing down their myths. Perhaps his most important work was conducted with various Aboriginal people from the New South Wales. In particular his collaboration with Percy Mumbulla of the Yuin people.
Awards
- 1984 - recipient of the Order of Australia Medal, for "services to literature, particularly in the preservation of Australian Aboriginal mythology."
- 1988 - Patrick White AwardPatrick White AwardThe Patrick White Award is an annual literary prize established by Patrick White. White used his 1973 Nobel Prize in Literature award to establish a trust for this prize....
- 1991 - Honorary Degree, Doctor of Letters, University of Newcastle
- 1991 - Freeman of the City of Lake Macquarie
Poetry
See also List of Poems by Roland Robinson- Beyond the Grass-tree Spears: Verse (1944)
- Language of the Sand : Poems (1949)
- Tumult of the Swans (1953)
- Deep Well (1962)
- Altjeringa and Other Aboriginal Poems (1970)
- The Hooded Lamp (1976)
- Selected poems (1944-1982) (1983)
Writing
- Black-feller, white-feller (1958)
- The Man Who Sold his Dreaming (1965)
- Wandjina, Children of the Dreamtime : Aboriginal Myths & Legends (1968) illustrations by Roderick Shaw
- Aboriginal myths & legends : age-old stories of the Australian tribes (1969)illustrated by Roderick Shaw
- The Australian Aboriginal (1977) photographs by Douglass Baglin
Autobiography
- The Drift of Things: an Autobiography, 1914-52 (1973)
- The Shift of Sands: an Autobiography, 1952-62 (1976)
- A Letter to Joan: an Autobiography, 1962-73 (1978)
Documentary
- The Back of Beyond (1954) directed by John HeyerJohn HeyerJohn Whitefoord Heyer was an Australian documentary filmmaker, who is often described as the father of Australian documentary film....
- "Roland Robinson: The land as voice" (Artwrite Pictures: 1987)