 A
brief life
Olegas Truchanas as born in Lithuana in 1923. As a refugee in West
Germany immediately after World War 2, he became involved with the
Bavarian alpine photographers around Munich. Truchanas arrived in
Tasmania in 1945, and took to exploring solo the unknown areas of
South-West Tasmania, such as the Gordon River. He traversed rugged
terrain of horizontal shrub and flood-prone rapids, accompanied
by a specially made aluminium kayak and his camera gear. Unfortunately,
he valuable collection of photographs and equipment was destroyed
in a bush fire in 1967. Truchanas recorded the environment of Lake
Pedder, before it was flooded in a Hydro-Electric Development in
1972. He would stage audio-visual lectures in Hobart to stir public
opinion against the development. His slides were accompanied by
the music of Sibelius and Delius. While Truchanas' efforts failed
to save Lake Pedder, he was successful in his fight to save the
last remaining Huon Pine forest in the Denison River, which now
bears his name. He was tragically downed after falling into the
Gordon River on 6 January 1972.
 Excerpt
from Olegas Truchanas' opening speech to exhibition of paintings
about Lake Pedder (19 November 1972)
Tasmania is not the only place in the world where long-term, careful
argument has been defeated by short-term economic advantage. When
we look round, the time is rapidly approaching when natural environment,
natural unspoiled vistas are sadly beginning to look like left-overs
from a vanishing world. This vanishing world is beautiful beyond
our dreams and contains in itself rewards and gratifications never
found in artificial landscape, or man-made objects, so often regarded
as exciting evidence of a new world in the making.
The natural world contains an unbelievable diversity, and offers
a variety of choices, provided of course that we retain some of
this world and that we live in the manner that permits us to go
out, seek it, find it, and make these choices. We must try to retain
as much as possible of what still remains of the unique, rare and
beautiful. It is terribly important that we take interest in the
future of our remaining wilderness, and in the future of our National
Parks. Is there any reason why, given this interest, and given enlightened
leadership, the ideal of beauty could not become an accepted goal
of national policy? Is there any reason why Tasmania should not
be more beautiful on the day we leave it, than on the day we came?
We don't know what the requirements of those who come after us will
be. Tasmania is slowly evolving towards goals we cannot no%y see.
If we can revise our attitudes towards the land under our feet;
if we can accept a role of steward and depart from the role of conqueror;
if we can accept the view that man and nature are inseparable parts
of the unified whole-then Tasmania can be a shining beacon in a
dull, uniform and largely artificial world.
quoted from Max Angus The world of Olegas Truchanas Hobart:
Olegas Truchanas Publication Committee, 1975, p. 51
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