The Encounter 1978 - 1979

Curator: Oh, this feels strangely… theatrical. Stagey, almost. With a touch of menace simmering just beneath the surface. Editor: That’s an interesting take. This is Sir Sidney Nolan’s “The Encounter,” part of the Tate Collections. The scene pulsates with potential. Curator: That policeman looks like he's stepped out of a fable, doesn’t he? All those clipped angles—beard, hat. Symbols of law, maybe? Editor: Symbols certainly abound. The stark silhouette of the tree, the bushranger figure. They could represent isolation or even defiance. Curator: I wonder if that bushranger sees the policeman, if they are even aware of each other? The tension hangs so heavy, but it's a static scene. What is this, a standoff? A dream? Editor: Precisely. It’s left to us to complete the narrative, to decide what that encounter actually means, or might mean, in our own lives. Curator: It's unsettling in the best way, isn't it? I keep wanting something to *happen.* Thanks for pointing out the way the narrative is open. Editor: Thank you, the pleasure was all mine. Nolan’s art always seems to speak directly to our subconscious, doesn’t it?