At least three generations of migrant market gardeners on the outskirts of Liverpool have been producing fresh food for Sydney since World War II. Our Migrant Farmers records the social histories of these farming communities, who established important commerce for the region.
A combination of sound, images and video, Our Migrant Farmers will reveal what life was like on the land with recorded commentary from the farmers themselves.
This exhibition also examines the second generation of these pioneering farmers who are now ageing and retired in this landscape. Many widowed women remain isolated on barren properties and closed poultry sheds stand as monuments to the past. The contribution this often unseen fringe community has made to Liverpool, greater Sydney and the nation is enormous.
Artist Therese Sweeney grew up in Busby from the early 1960s and has worked in fringe communities for several years as a creative and social entrepreneur. Therese has initiated and directed creative work in South-West Sydney and the inner city for sixteen years as a photographer, mentor, trainer, film director, video and oral historian.