Our Secret War is perhaps David’s most acclaimed series to date. Taking more than eight years to create, the series is also accompanied by a book that David has authored. It is his hope that through his book and series of paintings, he can take his viewers on a journey of discovery through Australia’s colonial history; that for David has been a journey of personal discovery. What he has learned about Australia’s colonial past, has not only shocked him, but has also greatly impacted the way he now views the indigenous people of Australia, their character, and their culture.
David says: “These images are about the invasion of the British and their occupation of Australia under the guise of Terra Nullius, or “land belonging to no one”. The paintings focus on the impact that the First Fleet of British invaders had on the land, its resources, and the displacement and maltreatment of the indigenous people that had lived there for thousands of years.The series also has a strong focus on indigenous heroes and their formidable resilience and resistance.