On Show At The ACP - Zed Nelson and Olivia Martin-McGuire

The Australian Center of Photography (ACP) is the nations longest running contemporary art space. The two current series of work on exhibition, 'Love Me' by Zed Nelson and 'Sleepers' by Olivia Martin-McGuire, could not have been in greater contrast in relation to intention and philosophy. 'Love Me' is a collection of images that explores societal values and the persistent quest for physical perfection. The subjects of Nelson's series features school girls, pageant entrants, body builders, vaginal reconstruction surgery candidates, Iranian's queuing for nose jobs, plastic surgery junkies and New Yorkers having foot surgery to fit into Jimmy Choo shoes. Nelson's series negotiates the boundaries between documentary and artistic photography. The harsh bright lighting of the photographs encourages the viewer to judge the subjects, within the portraits, based purely on physical appearance, an irony considering the the work sets out to challenge this trend. The series is successful in highlighting the ill health of a society obsessed with physical appearance. I left the exhibition with a disgust for the superficiality of society and almost a sense of despair.



In almost stark contrast Olivia Martin McGuire's work 'Sleepers' is a series that captures subjects transitioning into the uninhibited realm of the unconscious. The production quality of the works was achieved through the use of a medium format camera, allowing the artist to produce large scale prints which maintain fine detail with crisp accuracy. All images of the 'Sleepers' were shot in the artists studio on the same bed, adorned with pale yellow sheets, allowing a sense of unity throughout the series. Due to the large scale, sense of vulnerability and the sheer lack of inhibition of the subjects, the works are intensely intimate.

On Show At Stills Gallery - Pat Brassington

Stills gallery in Sydney is committed to exhibiting Australian contemporary photographic work. Their current exhibition is a selection of works from female artist Pat Brassington's recent series 'A Perfect Day'. A distinctive theme within Brassington's oeuvre is her beguiling surrealistic imagery. The colour palette within the series makes reference to a kind of post apocalyptic scenario, with a theatrical staging of figures which evokes both the unconscious and the absurd.

A work that particularly stood out for me was titled 'Rub Your Eyes', and featured a girl lying face down on the grass, swamped by her mountainous skirt. While this scenario generates a sense of familiarity, it simultaneously raises uncertainty with bleached and acrid tones making the landscape an unknown entity, counteracting connections of nature with the idyllic.

Brassington pushes the limits of photography as a medium, challenging the notion that a photograph captures a snippet of reality.

Re-View Review

The NGV established their first separate curatorial department of photography in 1967, with the current permanent collection standing at over 15, 000 photographs of which 3, 000 are by international artists (NGV, 2010). The recent photography exhibition at the NGV, 'Re-View', showcases 170 years of photography as a fine art and celebrates the 40th anniversary of the NGV's acquisition of it's collection. The exhibition reveals the progression of styles and techniques for capturing, developing and producing a photographic image.

As an exhibition 'Re-View' was relatively small, showcasing largely international artists. The exhibition looks at each decade from 1840 onwards, revealing remarkable images that have been influential in photographic history and the establishment of the medium as a unique art form. The common muse within the exhibition, which transcended all decades, was human perception and the projection of perceived or factual reality. Portraits were particularly prevalent within the exhibition, often providing a psychological insight into the personality and temperament of the sitter, allowing the viewer to be engaged in the stranger's reality. Despite ourphotography course being entirely digital, the progression of image qualities and finish resolutions through the decades particularly interested me.


Reference:
NGV, 2010 'Re-View', viewed 30th March 2010
http://ngv.vic.gov.au/review/