Travelling Exhibitions - completed
1918 Australians In France
1918
Australians In France tells the story of the AIF in the last year
of the First World War. The qualities of this fighting force, demonstrated
on Gallipoli and celebrated in the ANZAC legend, culminated in the victorious
actions of 1918. This exhibition recreates the war's last battles and
recounts the events behind the valour that is still revered and honoured
in France today.
The exhibition is contained within a creative ‘ruined' French village infrastructure employing artworks, photographs, uniforms, medals and battlefield relics to explore the men, weapons and events of 1918. First hand accounts and photographs of Australians killed in action provide a powerful and evocative means of exploring the themes of loss and remembrance, while a number of the relics represent the genesis of the Memorial and the heritage it portrays.
1918 – Australians In France is an exhibition which presents a fresh interpretation of Australia's vital role in the closing battles of the First World War. It challenges the accepted view that stagnant lines of trenches, inept leadership and endless slaughter typified the entire conflict. Instead it displays the reality that, by 1918 new tactics were leaving the trenches behind in a series of operations that combined fresh ideas with mobility and technology. In a year that started with the possibility of defeat for the allies, these operations would ultimately lead to victory over Germany.
Online exhibition
An online exhibition has been developed to complement this exhibition.
Tour Schedule
| Location | Start | Finish |
|---|---|---|
| AWM Special Exhibition gallery | 10/11/98 | 16/3/99 |
| Queensland Museum, Brisbane | 23/4/99 | 18/7/99 |
| Rockhampton Art Gallery | 17/9/99 | 24/10/99 |
| Gold Museum, Ballarat | 11/11/99 | 6/2/00 |
| National Wool Museum, Geelong | 18/2/00 | 30/4/00 |
| Orange Regional Gallery | 19/5/00 | 2/7/00 |
| Museum & Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin | 4/8/00 | 22/10/00 |
| WA Museum, Perth | 11/11/00 | 11/2/01 |
| South Australian Maritime Museum, Port Adelaide | 28/2/01 | 29/4/01 |
