Van Rudd for Lalor (Vic)
Van Thanh Rudd was born in Nambour, Queensland and is currently working as a visual artist in Melbourne's west. His involvement in the arts over the last 15 years included his early obsession with landscape painting around Nambour and Brisbane. Once moving to Melbourne in 1995, he studied figure drawing in various community venues around Melbourne. Since moving from Brisbane, Van has also played as a drummer, bass guitarist and keyboardist in various Melbourne pop/rock bands (Cheezlekane, Seconds, Stalis Vetch and Granma). The bands played in many Melbourne venues including the Punters Club and the Corner Hotel. He tried very hard to balance music (gigging a lot) and visual art until about 2007, when he decided that visual art could last him into old age. Van has exhibited his art regularly since 1995. He had his first solo show at the Northcote Library (RampArt) in 1997. He was briefly curator of RampArt in 1997 – the space was co-run by the Northcote Library and Darebin Artists Action Group (DAAG).
Van’s first step into art/politics was by becoming a member of the DAAG in 1997. Deeper involvement in global politics came about while attending the successful anti-globalisation rally (S11) in Melbourne in 2000. Van’s art began to follow his left-wing views when he met his amazing partner Tania Jorquera in 2002-03. Her family history was one of struggle against the US backed Pinochet regime in Chile. There was a direct correlation between Chile and Vietnam (Van’s heritage).
In 2004 he created The Carriers Project where he carries on foot his large paintings through busy city streets and shopping malls. He toured this project nationally in 2007. In 2007 he co-directed CLASS artspace (North Melbourne) with activist Roberto Jorquera. In 2009 he was co-founder of the collectives A-17P (Artists of the 17th Parallel) and The CEOs (Collective Engagement Operatives). Some of his latest exhibitions are called Eternal Residencies, curated by deceased victims of 20th and 21st century imperialist aggression. They are eternal interventions into institutions such as the Guggenheim Museum and The White House.
His art is influenced, inspired and directed towards movements of social justice around the globe. His major aim is to expose his often controversial art to as many people as possible in order to inspire discussion and debate about art's role in today's environmental, political and economic crises.
He is also an active indoor soccer player. His artworks include the mediums of installation, drawing, collage, painting and performance.
Hamish Chitts for Griffith (Qld)
Hamish Chitts is an anti-war activist, unionist and a revolutionary socialist.
Hamish believes that it is necessary for working people to take political power into their own hands and build a new society because as long as capitalism exists, working people will be exploited and people the world over will be oppressed in order for the capitalist class to divide and conquer.
Hamish believes that such social change will never come through working within the institutions of capitalist power. He is standing for the Revolutionary Socialist Party to use these elections as a platform to voice the people’s struggles. If elected, the resources of his parliamentary position would be dedicated to building the movements for justice. These movements are vital to empowering people and are the only way that change in the interest of working people has ever been brought about.
Hamish was in the Australian army for 12 years and is a veteran of the East Timor peacekeeping operation in 1999-2000. Through his time in the army he came to understand that it is always working people who pay the price for imperialist wars, including the workers in uniform who are sent to kill and die for the profits of an elite few.
In 2007, Hamish helped found Stand Fast, an organisation of veterans and service people that stands in opposition to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Hamish is an active campaigner in solidarity with the Palestinian people and with the Cuban Revolution. Hamish also actively supports the struggle for Aboriginal rights, the campaign for abortion rights, solidarity with the Venezuelan revolution and many other social justice struggles.
Hamish is a member of the Revolutionary Socialist Party and is proud to represent the party as a candidate for the seat of Griffith in the federal elections.