Disclaimer: The artworks featured in the article contain images of deceased Aboriginal people.
One artist has pulled moments from Australia's colonial past into the present, and brings his heritage to pieces which have been recognised in two prestigious art awards.
Danie Mellor, from the NSW Southern Highlands, has depicted the experiences of First Nations people in Queensland in large-scale works that demand the gazes of viewers, and prompt conversation about the nation's history.
"Historical montages" are brought to life in After the end of the world, which was a finalist in this year's Sir John Sulman Prize, and The acquired Arcadia, which was selected as a finalist in the Wynne Prize.
The contemporary artist, who has Aboriginal heritage with Scottish and Irish settler ancestry, said he was honoured to be exhibited with other artists who brought their own interpretations to the exhibitions' themes.
"It's great to be in dialogue with other pieces in ways you might not expect," he said.
The Sir John Sulman Prize recognises murals, genre paintings - which depict different aspects of everyday life, still life or figures in landscapes or subject paintings, which have idealised and dramatic elements.
After the end of the world was one of 29 paintings selected from 491 entries across Australia.
It is an "intricate story" of the Bowral artist's ancestors from the rainforests in north Queensland, who carry ancestral remains, while colonial settlers watch.
Mr Mellor drew on pictures from field photographer Alfred Atkinson and ethnographic collector and Aboriginal protector Walter Roth, as well as his own photos and sketches.
"It was kind of me bringing it together [with] sources and how to make a scene that has narration, that has a complexity of layers," he said.
The acrylic and gesso piece on linen, is 152 by 213.4 centimetres, which he said was a way to draw people in.
"I felt that it kind of needed the scale to have that sense of theatre, [it is] quite large," he said.
The dominance of the First Nations people, with the colonial settlers lining the background creates a sense of "spectatorship" and showed a "very difficult time [with] two worlds coming together".
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The tensions between Indigenous Australians in that area, who were also referred to as rainforest people, and white settlers, are also brought to life in the Wynne Prize entry The acquired Arcadia.
A historical photo inspired the piece once again to tell the story.
"Looking back as an artist is quite a privilege," he said.
The artist said he wanted to show colonial perceptions of the rainforest and its destruction by settlers.
Another unique element is its roundness, which is "like [an] ocular view into the painting, or a window portal into a different kind of space."
"The curve of circles is quite different, it hints at something beyond the perimeter of the painting," he said.
The Wynne Prize showcases Australian landscape paintings and sculptures annually.
You can see Mr Mellor's artworks in exhibitions at the Art Gallery of NSW from May 14, to August 28.
Danie Mellor's work has been featured in state, regional and national collections, including the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia (MCA) and the National Gallery of Australia.
Accolades for his works include the MCA's Sculpture Commission, the NGA Member's Acquisition Fund, and the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award.
He was a lecturer and senior lecturer at the National Institute of the Arts, Australian National University and the University of Sydney's Sydney College of the Arts.
The artist held a position at the Visual Arts Board at the Australia Council for the Arts, and served as chair of Artform for Create NSW, before he was appointed to the Board of MCA Australia and the Create NSW's Visual Arts Board.
His work has also been showcased internationally in museums such as the National Gallery of Canada, The British Museum, and National Museums Scotland.