Vision and Intent
My creative mind is haunted by abstract visions of what my ancestors were accustomed to. The emotional connection to their suffering and survival deeply echoes my own life. Through the photographic print series SCAR 3, I invite the viewer to confront and feel the pain of a history that has long been silenced through modern prosperity and collective ignorance.
Thematic Focus: Blood and Lustre
This body of work focuses heavily on the dark, unspoken histories embedded within the Australian landscape and sea. It serves as a visual confrontation, urging viewers to associate their own humanity with the Indigenous women and men who were once forced to unwillingly collect shells. These ancestors faced death beneath the waves all to serve foreign interests, enduring a complete disregard for their wellbeing.
"Beneath land and sea rests the history of industry of blood and lustre."
Through works like Drift, Token, Beneath, and Dispossession, I explore how generations drift silently while history continues to echo the deep scars left by the greed of stolen wealth. Our people were plucked from the dust and soil to soak beneath salt and sea for another's ornament.
Conceptual Medium and Imagery
Printed on Hahnemuhle German Etching Paper, the textures and rich tones of these photographs mirror the elemental nature of the history they portray. The imagery moves through heavy emotional landscapes:
The Weight of the Sea: Capturing the monochromatic resonances of a sea of lost souls, where unheard voices orchestrate beyond the tide and echo below the surface.
The Bleeding of Land: Symbolizing how ochre bleeds dry the seasonal hues, juxtaposing traditional connection with the violent arrival of figures from an unknown world claiming uncharted lies for foreign bounty.
Truth Behind the Lustre: Exposing the contrast between the beautiful exterior of the commercial shell and the heavy brine of ignorance that remains when the truth is obscured.
Ultimately, SCAR 3 is an invitation to begin your own journey to illuminate the dark history of this country, listening closely to the incoming tide for the songs of those who were drowned out.
Beneath
Breathless
Cradle
Drown
Enlightened
Float
Pain
Stolen
Trauma
Vessel