Australian Left Review
Article Title
An Ambition to Disturb
Abstract
An exhibition of Noel Counihan's work was held in the National Gallery in Melbourne from 4 October to 5 December, 1983 in connection with the artist's seventieth birthday. A long-standing member of the Communist Party of Australia, Counihan's art has always responded to the great social and human issues of the times. But in October 1981 he suffered a heart attack and stroke and it was feared that his artistic life may have ended. But he has resumed work. In this edited interview, conducted by Dave Davies at Noel Counihan 's Melbourne suburban home in October 1983, he looks back on many decades of activity and tells of the influence of his confrontation with death on his life and work.