2013 Jan Cleveringa "Not Everyone Gets Cake"Collage On 220gsm Paper

2013 Jan Cleveringa
"Not Everyone Gets Cake"
Collage On 220gsm Paper
42 x 59.5cm

Cleveringa's continuing delving into the context of Australian Identity in his arts practice and his fascination with grid forms, repetition and collage are used to create a tapestry of colour and exaggeration in terms of the welfare state in Australia.

The use of the words 'Dole-Bludger' is common place in Australian households. It is used to describe lazy Australians who are unemployed or refuse to work. It is part of the Hegemonic cultural stereotype used negatively for the unemployed, mostly young people, in Australian society. It has various connotations and uses, including those uses that are humorous and serious in conversation of everyday life. This word is also invariably used by political parties, and those in power, when there are points to be scored. Rarely is the term used when one uncovers the real need for a helping hand and their desperate, fragile position when needing the assistance. In the past, particularly in the Great Depression in Australian, the word 'Susso' was used meaning sustenance. Having a benefit was okay back then as half the country was unemployed including the middle class and rich.

Cleveringa's somewhat ironic use of the saying- 'not everyone gets cake' and his use of the aesthetically saccharin, pink iced cupcakes which are seemingly attractive to the eye and the stomach speaks about the 'Haves and Have Nots' in Australian society.