Loud and Luminous | Online Exhibition - Week 2

Loud and Luminous | Online Exhibition - Week 2
Loud and Luminous, 2020 Theme - Equality. Celebrating 100 Female Photographers. 

This week we feature artists, Brydie Piaf, Carly Earl, Charmaine Lyons, Chris Byrnes, Claire Williams, Conor Richardson, Ruby Spowart, Elaine Batton, Elise Searson and Erin Jonasson.
 

 

Brydie Piaf

At home my daughter chooses to wear comfortable unrestrictive clothing that suits the season. Despite not being the 1960’s any longer, that choice for her hasn’t always been available at school. Skirt or dress, it would take a challenging 13 months from the first raised question- ‘why can’t girls wear pants too?’ Now free to choose just as her brothers had always been able, her school uniform is no longer a hindrance to either learning or being active. Was it worth fighting for? YES. Choice is always worth fighting for. (Four states have now changed their school uniform policy.)

Carly Earl 

Sisters Elaine and Karen Liddy are rangers for the Lama Lama National Park (CYPAL) in far North Queensland. The park, which recently celebrated its ten year anniversary, was the first of its kind in the country to be jointly run by traditional land owners alongside Parks & Wildlife Services. Furthermore, Lama Lama is also well known for its strong female presence, with half of all rangers being women. Karen and Elaine Liddy are the backbone of the Lama Lama operations. These strong indigenous women are educating the younger generations about how to respect and care for the land, just as their ancestors did before them. This image was taken while discussing the importance of women on country. Karen put it simply “If it was all men, it would be messy, if a female is there, it will be organised.”

Charmaine Lyons – Illuminare 

Transgender Anglican Priest, the Revd. Dr Josephine Inkpin, lighting the way of equality for all. Illuminating the way forward from old to new she advocates the only way to God is through inclusion, recognition and the equality of all. For gender diverse people, including many who will never come to church, Josephine’s public ‘coming out’, is a powerful beacon, symbolising hope, whilst disrupting right-wing exploitation of God to maintain inequality. Standing in an ancient tradition as a spiritual Mother, she brings new life amid stones of strength and oppression, opening a window to a more just future.

Chris Byrnes

I make work out of an economy of means, a love of analogue and alternative photography and with an ongoing commitment to exploring the medium of photography.

These particular works come from Re-imagining the Canon exhibition and my response to the question: if you could write yourself into the Canon of western art history how would that look and sound.

My response was to consider the notion of living ‘she’ in a broken landscape. Without light we cannot exist Without light I have no image Without an image I cannot exist

I LOVE PHOTOGRAPHY

Claire Williams 

Krystal is a proud Worimi woman. Her business Gillawarra Arts was originally founded by her family members living on Purfleet Aboriginal Mission in the 1980’s. They were only permitted to work in approved domestic jobs and weren’t allowed to start businesses under the NSW Aboriginal Protection Act. Gillawarra Arts began in the garage and was a meeting place: a place to gather with community, and share stories and knowledge. Krystal’s family business was built on bringing people together and expressing their shared stories and connection to the land, and she continues this today. 

Krystal and her family embody the resilience of people who come together as a community and express themselves through art, when the opportunities to celebrate their culture and traditions were restricted and actively prevented by the State. For Krystal, equality is about justice for her people. The road to justice begins with Aboriginal people having the opportunity to continue and celebrate their traditions, speak their languages, share their connection to their land, and have their voices and stories truly represented and heard in Australia.

Conor Richardson 

To capture a scene that is child’s play, in its raw and undirected form is a pleasure and a gift, to be stored forever more. Black and white takes on a journalistic tone in which age is not defined. As for yet, the equality debate is still clearly undefined. It was hot that day, the boys wore less, they get to expose their macho chests. The girl, she’s strong but clad in hearts till she says, “fuck this” and joins in the part. 

Ruby Spowart - Beauty in Ageing

Some may say that only in youth there is beauty – as I witness in the unfolding of a fresh new orchid flower. But as I watched the flower each day, its beautiful strong colourful presence began to loose its vigour and the colours began to slowly fade. In the last stages of its life it turned a deep reddish tan almost gold. Its youthful form no longer evident but now wrinkled and withered it has a different kind of elegance – an equality of beauty… 

Elaine Batton - Beyond the glass ceiling

Times are changing, the glass breaks and gives and lets us progress, capturing the stages and moments as we expand our presence and take our many layers into the world. Seeking equality and visibility as the world changes, morphs and expands around us.

Elise Searson

I photographed Caleb in the Northern NSW town of Grafton just after he made the decision to leave year 12 because of bullying. He identifies himself as bisexual. After failed attempts to work with his school to combat bullying targeted at non heterosexual students Caleb became suicidal. On many accessions he was physically and emotionally abused by his peers which he says “made me fear for my life.” This was in 2018. Society has moved a few steps forward however this reminds us in some areas of Australia - mostly in regional and rural communities, equality remains a utopian vision.

Erin Jonasson

“Akim meets a horse for the first time in her life at the Mt Wycheproof cup, with 2 of her friends they left Melbourne behind for the day to enjoy the friendliness and hospitality of a country race meet” 

Akim Dau moved to Australia from South Sudan with her Mother and siblings when she was 7. The struggle goes on to move the Australian Government allow her father to join them. 

As a young girl who grew up in Papua New Guinea, I have never been able to accept that we are better or worse as a person because of the colour of our skin, our religion or where we were born. Since the beginning of time humans have migrated across the globe. How have we as people let it get this far with families being torn apart by the few conservatives elected to run some countries. We are all equal.