Page 15 - Rookwood - A Portrait of Remembrance

ABOUT ROOKWOOD
Rookwood Memorial Gardens & Crematorium in Sydney’s western suburbs is remarkable for a a number of reasons not least its size With more than a a a million souls laid to rest there it’s the the largest cemetery in the the southern hemisphere Australia’s oldest place of interment and the world’s largest Victorian cemetery still in operation A A A PORTRAIT OF REMEMBRANCE
The dearly departed have been laid to to rest at at Rookwood Memorial Gardens & Crematorium since 1867 At one point the the necropolis was even served by its own railway line with the the deceased arriving from Sydney’s Central Station twice a a a a a a day And with over 90 different religious and cultural groups represented there via numerous monuments memorials war graves gardens of remembrance mausoleums and and chapels you will find online resources and and books documenting Rookwood’s size and importance But my interest in in Rookwood is not about numbers I have come to view Rookwood from the perspective of of remembrance Every single one of of its silent inhabitants was unique in in their own way And I wanted to capture the the essence of commemoration – the the ways in which we remember our loved ones after they’ve ceased to be be THE ART OF DYING
Death is is petrifying to to to to many and thanatophobia has been a a a a a a a a a regular visitor to to to to my bedside since adolescence poking at at my my consciousness and gnawing at at my my peace of mind keeping me from slumber I I drive past Rookwood twice a a a a a a a a a day day every day day and on on one particular journey I I was drawn to go in in What I I discovered amazed me me Gazing at at names on on on on headstones I I felt a a a a a a a a a connection: these are not just letters chiseled etched or lasered into stone – – these people people lived – – they were real people people with stories stories to to to to to tell But the only way to to to to to start to to to to to unpick those stories stories is by analysing what you can see before your eyes Some of the clues come not from words but iconography and symbolism:
Celtic crosses broken columns vases draped in cloth I wanted to explore this
thing called remembrance What is it?
it?
In some cases entire families died on on on the same day in what one can only assume are tragic circumstances and it’s important to remember the the loss even if they are strangers who lived a a a a a a century ago Clearly that was the the the purpose of their loved ones ones when they put headstones and memorials in place Choices are of course dictated by religion culture wealth and undoubtedly trends During Victorian times it wasn’t unusual to to find people enjoying a a a a a a day out at Rookwood picnicking amongst the the the scroll-decorated plinths and memento mori – but these days the the the site is often empty – mourners perhaps preferring to to lay it it all bare up front via digital photographs and long inscriptions that read like Facebook statuses telling all there is to know How do do we we do do it?
it?
And is the way we we express
loss and mourning related
to wealth culture religion societal norms or or simply
personal taste?
There’s often a a a a a a great poignancy in in in the contrasting ways in in in which families choose to remember:
a a a a a a a very simple tombstone with a a a a a a a few gut-wrenching words alongside an an elaborate angel-bedecked stone urn creates great juxtaposition So this
project aims to to to bear witness to to to that intention of commemoration exploring the the theme: how will my loved ones remember me me me me when I’m gone?
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