Harry accused of cultural theft

With their earthy tones and lizard motifs, Prince Harry's paintings won admiration at home and last week earned him a grade B at A-level. But his work has stirred anger in Western Australia, where he is accused of stealing Aboriginal themes.

In fact, the prince has painted his way into the kind of row that might seem familiar to his grandfather, the Duke of Edinburgh, who has an uncanny knack for causing offence around the globe.

Harry's Aboriginal-inspired art was unveiled earlier this year as part of his 18th birthday celebrations. The images of the prince, posing proudly in a paintstained apron in front of two canvases, were seen worldwide.

Now some of Australia's bestknown Aboriginal artists claim he has stolen their culture.

That the artworks have been valued at £15,000 has added to the hurt felt in poor desert communities and put them on a collision course with Buckingham Palace.

The artists say the prince has appropriated their lizard symbol, which had totemic significance

in at least seven Aboriginal regions and many clans.

"He needs to get down here and see where it came from," said Julie Dowling, who is among the leading five contemporary urban Aboriginal artists.

"He needs to figure out where the image came from, he needs to follow it back. What he has to realise is that when he does that, he's ripping off another family.

"His grandmother is the head of his church, he should show respect for other people's religions." Prince Harry, who is

due to spend his gap year in Australia later this year, has blundered into the thorny terrain of intellectual property rights over cultural works sold in an open market.

Dowling pointed to the work of Turkey Tolson, who sold a painting for $2,000 (then about £750) shortly before he died in 2001. The work was sold on last year for $500,000 (£210,000). "We're talking about an amazing piece of cultural heritage that just went overseas," she said.

Buckingham Palace said the paintings did not purport to be Aboriginal art. "We haven't received any formal complaints and it's never been the intention of the prince to cause any offence," a spokesman said.

But the Tolson case and others have led to a new Aboriginal activism, with alleged cases of cultural exploitation being investigated by Robert Eggington of the Dumbartung Aboriginal Corporation.

He said: "When we see our symbols on underwear or toilet seat covers, it can be very disappointing. It strips our work of its integrity and its dignity."

Anne Loxley, a curator in Sydney specialising in Aboriginal art, described the prince's work as at best "quaint but misinformed". She said she expected a major test case in the near future.

"With the law going the way it is, even Prince Harry could spark something off," she said.