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It was 1951 and Australia's economy was riding on the sheep's back — the dawn of the Rolls Royce decade of wool, as it came to be known.
A young international photographer found himself deep in northern New South Wales on Burren Burren station.
Francis Reiss was supposed to be learning about the wool trade. Instead, he ended up documenting an enduring archive of agricultural Australia.
The men and women captured in Francis Reiss' photos are the romantic ideal of rural Australia — faces worn from hard work, with smiles born from hope and a sense of optimism.
Now 90 years old and based in Melbourne, Reiss views his photos simply as a reflection of the strong, generous character of people in the country.
"I see terribly nice people, as they still are if you go to the country. They are the nicest people in Australia," he says.
Having only just arrived from New York, where he photographed for LIFE magazine, Reiss marvels that he was ever allowed out on Burren Burren station.
"They were kind enough — or foolish enough — to take me into their home. I couldn't ride a horse, so they had to ferry me around in a Jeep."
Reiss grew up in wartime Europe, moving from his birthplace Germany to England when he was eight years old.
At age 17, he became the youngest photographer at Picture Post magazine, where his collection of photos from Burren Burren Station would ultimately be published.
At the end of the World War II, a 21-year-old Reiss was lured by the rumoured prosperity of New York, where he quickly established himself as a photographer for the prestigious LIFE magazine.
"It opened all sort of doors for you," says Reiss.
"Girls would queue up to get your signature."
For all the glamour of working for LIFE, Reiss became dissatisfied with the pay of photography.
His father was doing well in the wool trade working as a merchant in Yorkshire, and he invited him to join the business on the proviso that he learnt more about the industry in Australia.
That took him to the agriculture outpost of Burren Burren station, near Collarenabri, just south of the Queensland border.
In spite of the remote location, Reiss can recall the relative opulence of abundant meat.
"We had lamb chops for breakfast, leg for lunch and the best thing — shoulder for dinner," he says.
"Where I'd come from in England, the meat ration was still around 180 grams a week."
Reiss would eventually go on to have a long and rich career in the wool industry.
But his photos from 1951, currently on exhibition at Deakin University, document not only a specific moment in history, but his own deep affection for rural Australia.
"It's a very small contribution to this country, which is the best place I've ever lived in my life," he says.
"Nothing in the world equals Australia. I love this country."
Topics: rural, women-in-agriculture, photography, history, collarenebri-2833, melbourne-3000
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