Melbourne Shrine of Remembrance
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The Helmut
Dougal Stewart has served in East Timor and Afghanistan. He was deployed to Afghanistan in November 2008 with 1 Commando Regiment as part of Special Operations Task Group Task Force 66.
He lent his helmet to Australian artist eX de Medici, who incorporated it, and helmets from other conflicts, into a series of works exhibited in 2011 under the title Need Head. In eX de Medici’s work, the helmet takes on an unexpectedly organic quality, like an insect’s exoskeleton. The helmet is a symbol of protection, but also reminds us of the vulnerability of the head it contains, and recalls the artistic tradition of painting skulls in still lifes as a reminder of our mortality. The label ‘O POS NKA’ denotes that the wearer has O Positive blood and no known allergies: vital information in an emergency.
On loan courtesy of Dougal Stewart
