Lisa Bellear | |
|---|---|
 Publicity photo from The University of Queensland Press[1] | |
| Born | (1961-05-02)2 May 1961 Australia, Sydney |
| Died | 5 July 2006(2006-07-05) (aged 45) Melbourne, Victoria |
| Known for | Poetry,Photography |
Lisa Marie Bellear (2 May 1961 inMelbourne,Victoria – 5 July 2006 in Melbourne) was anIndigenous Australian poet, photographer, activist, spokeswoman, dramatist, comedian and broadcaster.[2] She was aGoenpul woman of theNoonuccal people ofMinjerribah (Stradbroke Island),Queensland. Her uncles wereBob Bellear, Australia's first Indigenous judge, andSol Bellear who helped to found theAboriginal Housing Corporation inRedfern in 1972.
Bellear was adopted into a white family as a baby and was told she had Polynesian heritage.[3] As an adult she explored her Aboriginal roots.[4]
Bellear died unexpectedly at her home in Melbourne. She was 45 years old. She was buried atMullumbimby cemetery.[2]
Posthumous poetry collectionAboriginal Country, Ed. Jen Jewel Brown, UWA Publishing, 2018 was chosen as one of the books of the year by poet John Kinsella inAustralian Book Review. Bellear wroteDreaming in Urban Areas (UQP, 1996), a book of poetry which explores the experience of Aboriginal people in contemporary society. She said in an interview withRoberta Sykes that her "poetry was not about putting down white society. It's about self-discovery."[5]
Other poetry was published in journals and newspapers. She was awarded theDeadly Awards prize in 2006 for making an outstanding contribution to literature with theIlbijerri Theatre Company performed play by Kylie Beling, John Harding and Gary FoleyThe Dirty Mile: A History of Indigenous Fitzroy (a suburb of Melbourne) based on her original concept; and her many published poems and performances of her writing as a poet, actor and comedian.[6]
Bellear was a prolific photographer.[7] Her work was exhibited at the2004 Athens Olympic Games and at theMelbourne Museum as part of their millennium celebrations.[8]
Bellear was a broadcaster at the community radio station3CR in Melbourne where she presented the show 'Not Another Koori Show' for over 20 years. She was a member of the 2003 VictorianStolen Generations Taskforce, having herself been removed from her parents under this policy.[9][10]
She was also a founding member of theIlbijerri Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Theatre Co-op, the longest-running Aboriginal theatre troupe in Australia. Ilbijerri producedThe Dirty Mile in March 2006 as a dramatised walking trail through the streets ofFitzroy, Melbourne.
Bellear also contributed to theBrunswick Power Football Club and theAustralian Labor Party.[2][11]
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