After Image

I was and still am very proud of my father, Michael Alen Riley, and his achievements in life. I feel all the experiences and challenges he went through, good and bad, helped him become the artist he is today. I am amazed by my dad’s photographs – he had the ability to take photos of anything and make them so interesting and beautiful. He also could tell his life stories and experiences in symbolic ways.

I loved going to Boomalli Aboriginal Artists Co-operative with my dad as I was able to see his artwork in progress. Sometimes my father would let me take photos with his camera on art shoots; he would even put my name at the bottom if it was published as he was such an honest and fair man. He was the best father a son could ever have: he was loving, caring and supportive 100 per cent every day. My dad would always make me feel good about myself, which is one of the reasons I loved spending time with him. Our favourite thing to do was to watch movies together, either at home or at the cinemas, particularly the 007 James Bond and Batman movies.

Nothing was too much effort for my dad where I was concerned. He made my childhood special, taking me on camps, fishing trips, and other father-and-son adventures. Of all my dad’s artworks, the cloud series (2000) is my favourite, and not just because blue is my favourite colour. I just found that it was full of symbolism. I thought it was quite different seeing a cow floating in the sky. My favourite photo is the one with a bird’s wing spread across the sky with the clouds in the background.

I only realised how talented and well-known my father was when images from the cloud series were hung on banners at Circular Quay as part of the Festival of Sydney in 2003. I remember one time, waiting at a bus stop, looking at a poster hanging in the shelter, admiring its beauty and originality. It was a poster from the Art Gallery of New South Wales. Then I discovered who the artist was. It was my father, Michael Riley. It was from one of his first artworks, a series of portraits of five Aboriginal women, one of whom was my cousin, Maria.

I thought my dad’s film, Empire (1997), was amazing and quite interesting. This film helped me realise that I am Indigenous, and that I should respect my heritage. Seeing my father do so much with his life in art has inspired me. I have decided to follow in my father’s footsteps but to do so using a different medium, painting.

My first artwork was of an elder. My dad saw it partly finished and when he passed away I continued and completed it so I was able to place it with him at his burial. After he died I decided to continue with my painting but decided to do a more cultural painting using dots.

In memory of my father, Michael Alen Riley, I have decided as his only son to continue our name in the art world for years to come. I am very proud of my dad and always will be. I am proud of him and the heritage he gave me and sincerely hope my father’s artworks will continue to hang in galleries all around the world to be admired by thousands, even millions, and maybe one day have our artworks hung side by side.

Ben Riley