Who is Dr Kiera Lindsey?

Oh, who am I…?

I am passionate about the past and how it sheds light upon our present situations to illuminate the best path forward. History needs to meet us in our moment and for that to happen, its methods need to constantly evolve to engage with the increasingly rich and dimensioned world we live in, as well as the wicked problems we humans often create.

I have a PhD in History from Melbourne Uni and taught Australian history at UniSA for six years before receiving an Australian Research Council Award to explore questions of historical craft and speculative biography.

In November 2023 my next speculative biography about a woman named Adelaide Ironside (1831-1867), who was Australia’s first locally born professional female painter, will be published with Allen & Unwin.

I am seriously excited about my new role as South Australia’s History Advocate. But fear not, my friends, as well as work there is play! I try to swim in the ocean each day and adore being back in South Australia as my husband and I met and married here in 2014.

What are you most looking forward to at the History Festival?

Super excited for this year’s History Festival. I’ve only been back in Adelaide for six months and have never experienced a full History Festival before.

With over 500 events it’s inspiring to read through the program and imagine all the wonderful events which lie ahead. It’s also been a pleasure to work with our hardworking History Trust team as they bring everything together. Gee, they do a great job.

I am looking forward to Postcards from the Edge: Making history matter as I get to share the stage with Mr. South Australia … Keith Conlon! I’m not sure how we are going to keep it to time! We’re discussing why South Australian history matters and who cares about ‘history’ and ‘heritage’ in twenty-first century Australia. It’s a people’s forum, so it will be fascinating to hear from the audience too. But I am doing two other events, one on History and Imagination and one on Creative Histories. These will be crackers too!

If you could meet anyone from history, who would it be and why?

Well, as a fan of multiple perspectives, I'm afraid it has to be more than one!

Although the famous figures who apparently ‘changed the world’ are intriguing, I’ve always been most curious about those who the historical record often renders silent.

My first book, The Convict’s Daughter, for instance, was about Mary-Ann Gill (1832-1903) my feisty great, great, great aunt, who instigated a colonial scandal in 1848 when she tried to elope with the Attorney General’s second son.

What do you want people to know about history today?

History really matters. It can fundamentally change the way we chart our future, together.

Over several decades now, we have seen people - all over the world -

passionately advocating for their understanding of the past, be that about statues, Australia’s colonial contexts or the legacies of slavery, to name a few.

Although these conversations are not always ‘pretty’, we are learning to explore uncomfortable truths and that is healthy and important.

In the process ‘history’ is really coming of age, such that we now benefit from diverse perspectives and approaches, some of which are so edgy they challenge the definition of what history is! I love that because it confirms that everyone has a role to play in giving the past a future now!

Events mentioned above:

  • Postcards from the edge: Making history matter, 2 May, 6:00pm-8:00pm at Mercury Cinema
  • History & Imagination: Adversaries or Allies, 4 May, 5:30pm-7:00pm at Mercury Cinema
  • Creative Histories: Using wonder to disrupt & heal the past, 11 May, 5:30pm -7:30pm at South Australian Maritime Museum

More information from the 2023 History Festival edition of WeekendPlus: