Luxe Lanyard, The Aboriginal Flag

1970
Mixed Media On Paper

Harold Thomas is a First Nations artist, a proud Luritja man from the Northern Territory.

The Aboriginal flag has become a symbol of Aboriginal Australia and holds special legal and political status worldwide.

The flag’s design consists of a coloured rectangle divided in half horizontally. The top half of the flag is black to symbolise Aboriginal people. The red in the lower half stands for the earth and the colour of ochre, which has ceremonial significance. The circle of yellow in the centre of the flag represents the sun. The designer Harold Thomas says the colours of the flag represent the Aboriginal people of Australia and their spiritual connection to the land.

The flag was first raised on 9 July in 1971 at a land rights rally in Victoria Square/Tarntanyangga, Adelaide, on then-National Aborigines Day. It has become an enduring symbol of Aboriginal strength, representing Aboriginal people and their ongoing spiritual connection to the land.

In view of the flag’s wide acceptance and importance in Australian society, the Commonwealth took steps in 1994 to give the flag legal recognition. On 14 July 1995, the Governor General of Australia William Hayden proclaimed both the Aboriginal Flag and the Torres Strait Islander Flag to be 'Flags of Australia' under the Flags Act 1953. However it wasn't until 1997 that the Federal Court of Australia officially recognised Harold Thomas as the author of the flag. This decision meant the flag was protected under the Copyright Act 1968 and can only be reproduced in accordance with this legislation or with the permission of Mr Thomas.