Behind the Lines: The Year's Best Cartoons 2009 was on show at the National Museum in Canberra from 8 December 2009 to 31 January 2010, before setting out on a national tour.
One of the key roles of the National Museum of Australia is to facilitate a national conversation about the significant moments in Australian history. The Behind the Lines exhibition, with its selection of some of the best cartoons published in 2009, provides a means of achieving this objective.
The cartoons on show challenge the viewer to reflect on some of the major controversies of the last 12 months. While some of these events will fade into the past, leaving little trace on the national memory, others will be seen as reminders of defining moments in the Australian story. By exhibiting and preserving these cartoons, the Museum provides a window into how these events were understood at the time they occurred.
As well as presenting a record of the year's events, Behind the Lines also celebrates Australia's wonderful tradition of political cartooning. Artists featured this year include Alan Moir, Bill Leak, Cathy Wilcox, David Pope, Andrew Weldon, Fiona Katauskas, John Spooner, Mark Knight and Warren Brown.
Please enjoy the cartoons and take the opportunity to join the conversation about Australian history.
Craddock Morton
Director
National Museum of Australia
