In their own image: Greek Australians

In Their Own Image captures the stories, the successes, the conflicts and the previously unrecognised diversity of Australia’s Greek migration and settlement. From the arrival of seven Greek convicts in 1829 to the present day, Greek-Australians have played a vital part in national life. Documentary photographer Effy Alexakis and social historian Leonard Janiszewski have been researching their history and contemporary presence since 1982 and have made many field-trips throughout both Australia and Greece, painstakingly piecing together what has become a giant jigsaw puzzle. This long-term project has resulted in the creation of a nationally significant archive, in exhibitions, publications, documentary films and in In Their Own Image, an historical overview of almost two hundred years of the history of Greek-Australians. With 194 dramatic images, this major publication breaks down stereotypes and displays the richness and depth of Greek-Australian history and culture. It illuminates how Greek-Australians have been shaped by a Greece of memory and an Australia perceived as offering a future of hope and opportunity. Chapter titles include: ‘Early Settlement’, ‘Work’, ‘The Greek Café’, ‘Migration & Remigration’, ‘Identity’, ‘Aspects’ and ‘Comparisons’. The book is a companion publication to the authors’ touring exhibition of the same name that was developed in partnership with the State Library of New South Wales. The exhibition has travelled to Perth, Darwin, Adelaide, Hobart, Brisbane, Canberra, Sydney, Melbourne, Thessaloniki and Athens. In Their Own Image is a moving tribute to the many thousands of Hellenic people who have contributed so much to Australian life and is a celebration in words and pictures of the Greek-Australian experience.