Welcome to Behind the Lines 2023, the Museum of Australian Democracy’s annual exhibition of political cartoons.
Each year, Behind the Lines takes on a different exhibition theme that, in a humorous way, sums up the year. In 2023, that theme is 'All Fun and Games': inspired by traditional backyard party games. In 2023 political party games were being played in parliament and featured in Australia’s daily news cycle: from the tug of war over the Voice referendum to the fun-for everyone game of pass the interest rate parcel.
The exhibition space, located on the lower floor of Old Parliament House, is decorated to evoke a child’s birthday party. A long, musk-pink wall, 3.1 meters high by 17 metres long, extends across the front of the exhibition.
In the left quarter of the wall is large text in red, white and bright yellow reading ‘All Fun and Games’.
A silver hills hoist is embedded in the centre of the pink wall. Its central pole sits flush against the wall and two quadrants of washing line extend out from the wall. Bunting, party lights, felt donuts and colourful socks and underwear hang on the line, as does a multi-coloured, kangaroo-shaped piñata. Below the piñata, an illustration on the wall shows politicians, drawn as though children, reaching to catch the contents of the piñata as it falls. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese – dressed in red shorts, t-shirt and pointy party hat – wears a white blindfold. His tongue pokes out as he swings a baseball bat at the piñata.
A white picket-fence, flush with the wall, extends from below the hills hoist and out to the right. Illustrations of individual balloons on strings rise from the fence.
In front of the left side of the wall are chairs, a table and activities that visitors can interact with. A food fight-themed game of cornhole sits against the wall in the centre of the white fence. A table covered in illustrations of food offers a place to play a card game. Two red chairs with high backs are set out in front of a large screen that plays a video featuring interviews with cartoonists.
Either side of the pink wall doorways lead into corridors that form a capital H-shape. Along these corridors, cartoons in light-coloured wooden frames hang from wire extending from picture rails high on the off-white walls. The cartoons are arranged in groups of roughly 12. Between these groupings are large, floor to ceiling, brightly coloured panels, each with text over repeating, party-themed images: cupcakes, lollies, lolly bags, toy soldiers and so on. A thick, musk-pink border skirts the bottom of the walls.
In these audio descriptions, you’ll hear three voices. Ruth and Sam, two MoAD Museum Experience Officers, will describe the cartoons. I’m Alex, the curator of Behind the Lines 2023, and I’ll read the label after each cartoon description.
So pop on a party hat, break out the bunting and crank up the music because here it’s all fun and games.
