PAST FIRE by Rick McRae

This is a set of drawings of bushfires around Canberra in the 1990s. They are based on material that I collected on the fire ground. Back then I was the bushfire arson investigator, planning officer, photographer and more at many of the local fires.
The drawings focus on fire and its interactions with people – both residents and fire fighters.

I started working in bushfire for the ACT Government the week that we officially got self-government. My bushfire vehicle had the number-plate 200-005, and my office space is now used by an MLA in the Legislative Assembly building. Canberra has changed a lot, as has bushfire in our area.
As an ecologist I had a strong interest in the impacts of fire. As a research scientist I also had a strong interest in fire behaviour.
In the 1990s I was sent out to most non-urban fires with a list of roles: arson investigator, photographer and planning officer. I accumulated a large volume of material. My trusty (and heavy) SLR camera took a lot of slides. My VHS video camera recorded a lot of unique material, especially about fires on the urban edge.
I have now retired, but I am still researching wildfires with the Bushfire Research Group at UNSW Canberra. So much to learn…

Coming from an artistic background (my brother is a naval war artist) I was always looking at this material for the message being conveyed.
Recently I have been doing drawings based on some of the photos. The goals were both to focus on fire itself, and on its interactions with humans. I reduced the distracting background detail. I hope that I have succeeded, and in an interesting way. Some of what you see is no longer in play. The 2003 fires almost completely halted nuisance arson. Climate change is hitting us with some of the worst fires ever seen, globally. Land management practices have radically altered, too.

And, yes, there is also a lot more that I want to do with my archive!