Fine Art Photography
These images are something a bit more personal to me. Taken by me, and of me, they are a way to further understanding myself.
I have always loved acting and this form of photography gives me the chance to take on a persona and act as a character in order to create the works.
Swamp Girl
Taken as part of a series by the same name, this photograph (and the others from the series) focuses on a fictional character who lived in my paddocks. A wild girl who is scared and intrigued by the viewer.
This photo was taken as part of a high school project in 2009. Along with my class mates I entered the Eden Arts Award with this image, with absolutely no expectations or thoughts to impress the judge. It must have though, for, much to my surprise, the judge loved it, and I won the photography award.
This lost looking little girl is what I look at when I doubt myself. This photograph not only helped me to realize that she was who I had become, but also to over come that.
Jack's Paddock
This series from the 2009-2010 break explores the idea of how we are often our own greatest enemy.
There is almost always a piece of our mind waiting for us to fail, or pulling us down, telling us we are not good enough.
As a young adult I was particularly aware of this kind of behavior.
We surround ourselves with our own troubles, our own negative thoughts and this makes our minds crowded and busy. Worry, anxiety, depression, and other negative thoughts and emotions surround us and we become overwhelmed.
We become lonely in the busyness of it all. Surrounded by nothing but ourselves.
Despite how dark these things sound, this was actually one of the most fun and funny shoots I have done. Thinking of where I can try to pretend to hide or attack from, trying to half fall off the log, and running back and forward to the camera to set the timer, and running back to my position before the shutter went off.
Tree Nymph
Working on the idea that all things are in constant change, and working with shutter speed to improve my technical skills I created a series entitled tree nymph. These images consist of 'half seen' figures, showing some signs of solidity and yet fading away into the background.
If you were wanting to read further into the image you could say that it speaks of the magic of nature and deforestation and how it is the trees that hold that magic in this world (where the nymphs hand touches the tree she becomes more solid)
This Photograph was taken in 2010 during my first year of university.
Forest Girl
During my second year of university in 2011 I revisited the idea of a wild girl 'caught' by the camera.
Having studied Francesca Woodman in some depth I decided to try working with a square frame. Square frames are apparently meant to be harder to compose however I found them quite comfortable to use.
"Princesses"
This triptych has two main foci.
The first is the three female figures. This is what society says females should be, dependent, an object of desire, hopeful, pretty, dressed up. We are encourage to think this way, even in child hood, through things such as Disney Princesses (though I admit, things are slowly changing there).
The second is the shutter release held in each of the figures hands. This symbolizes that it is each womens responsibility to represent themselves in the manner that they want to be seen. (It is up to women to re-define themselves).
Photographed 2013
Back
Photographed in 2013, this set of works talks about how women often view themselves.
We are are encouraged to believe, even from a young age, through social normality and the media, that we are not adequate.
We should not be seen. Not how we really are. We should cover up this, hide that, change these things. We are taught to hide, to force ourselves into these pre-determined molds of what we should look like, what we should be.
And if we do not fit these molds, then we should change ourselves.
Put simply, these photographs are of a character who does not feel adequate in her own skin.
Untitled
Photographed in 2013, this image was really just me playing around and having some fun in the studio
Figure
Taking inspiration from some of the more traditional surrealist photography, I focused on using and distorting the female figure in order to create images that simultaneously degrade by focusing on the body as an object, and creating an image that is alike those of the multiple face, many armed Eastern Gods.
In true surrealist style, this creates strange conflicting ideas and contradictions as to what the image is really about.
Photographed in 2013.