The announcement comes in the same week as the passing of Joan Green OAM, continuing a long family legacy of contributions to the Arts.
The $25,000 biennial award recognises high-quality published work that makes a significant contribution to understanding Tasmania’s past and seeks to celebrate and promote books on Tasmanian history and cultural heritage.
The longlist of eight ranges across biography, history, historical fiction, and the storytelling power of art.
The judges for the 2022 award were Professor Kate Darian-Smith, Executive Dean and Pro Vice-Chancellor College of Arts, Law and Education at the University of Tasmania; Professor Greg Lehman Pro Vice-Chancellor, Aboriginal Leadership at the University of Tasmania; and Ian Terry from the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery.
“What a wonderful contribution Joan has made, with her husband Dick, to the cultural community in Tasmania. To appreciate writing and history with such meaningful support creates a legacy that benefits us all,” said Professor Kate Darian-Smith.
“Once again we are seeing the rich talent that exists in our writing community, not only here in Tasmania but across the nation. The longlist recognises many different styles of writing across diverse topics, from our environments to artistic processes, and tracing the history and politics that have shaped Tasmania.
“Some authors address big ideas for our future, including how we recognise the complex impacts of the colonial past. But all the books tell stories about the people and places on our island.
“I have thoroughly enjoyed every one of these books and would like to congratulate all the longlisted authors.”
LONGLIST
To Serve in a Distant Land by Keith Adkins (Blubber Head Press)
The waking dream of art: Patricia Giles, painter by Alison Alexander (Forty South Publishing)
I Shed My Skin: A Furneaux Islands story by Jane Giblin (Forty South Publishing)
Fires, Farms and Forests: a human history of Surrey Hills, north-west Tasmania by Robert Onfray (Forty South Publishing)
Truganini: Journey through the apocalypse by Cassandra Pybus (Allen and Unwin)
Truth-Telling: History, sovereignty and the Uluru Statement by Henry Reynolds (NewSouth Books)
The Burning Island by Jock Serong (Text Publishing)
A Welshman Called Rebecca by Janine Marshall Wood (Forty South Publishing)
The Dick and Joan Green Family Award for Tasmanian History was established in 2016 to commemorate the contribution of Dick and Joan Green to Tasmanian culture and history.
Key figures in the establishment of the National Trust, the Green family have been strong supporters of the arts and various community organisations.
The late Dick Green AM was a solicitor and former alderman and Mayor of Launceston and served on various boards including the National Trust, the State Library of Tasmania, and the Tasmanian Theatre Company.
Joan Green OAM, a champion golfer, managed the Clarendon House volunteer group for over fifty years. She contributed to organisations including The Australiana Fund (Tasmania) and the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, among others.
Speaking on behalf of the Green family, Caroline Johnston, one of Dick and Joan’s daughters, said, “The family is so pleased to continue to be involved in this award in partnership with the University of Tasmania.
“We are excited to hear of the books selected for long list for this third award and to see the variety of the subject matter; and appreciate the contribution of all the judges as their role is vital to this award.”
The shortlist for the award, which is managed by the University of Tasmania, will be announced on May 2020, with the winner revealed in June.
More information can be found on the University of Tasmania or the Green Family Award websites.
Image: Tasmanian Aborigines, 1856-57, by Robert Dowling, National Gallery of Victoria.