Category 'Art'

Having worked there for three years, Bribie Island is close to my heart, and I've noticed how the local's faces light up when they talk about its history. It was impossible not to include Bribie Island as part of 'The Land and I' project since it has experienced such pivotal historical moments and once I'd learned of the uniqueness of Red Beach I knew I had my location. If you haven't seen the project already, please visit the 'Stories of Bribie Island' page at Visit Moreton Bay Region. [caption id="attachment_4485" align="aligncenter" width="960"] Red Beach[/caption]   Like many I was quite taken with the story of Bribie the Basket Maker and initially wanted to portray the convict with his Indigenous lover but was advised against it by the historical society who understandably are sick to death of the myth. As I was already pretty sold on the concept I decided to keep the idea but shift the focus to Thomas Welsby, the story's creator. I think the notion of this enduring myth having been hotly contested and written about excessively for generations is just a captivating as the original story itself. When studying the few existing photos of Welsby I realised he kind of looks like my dad, so that was my model sorted! We had to leave around 5am to make it to Bribie by sunrise so it's lucky my dad's an early riser (although not so lucky for me who needs my sleep). We walked for a few minutes in the dark to my chosen spot where I set up my camera and lights (which kept blowing over) while he shivered away in his secondhand suit. Thanks Dad. Eagles circled overhead to see what we were up to. [gallery size="large" ids="4488,4484,4486"]   I always envisioned the Welsby character writing the 'Bribie The Basket Maker' story in the sky with an oversized fountain pen because a normal sized pen would be too difficult to see. I tracked down a historical looking font for the the text which was a challenge to make fit in a pleasing way. The koala was added from shots taken at Australia Zoo as many believe Bribie's name actually came from the Indigenous word for koala, 'Boorabee' or 'Borobi' (which you may recognise from the 2018 Commonwealth Games' mascot) but this word originates from the Gold Coast region so no one is sure. The crab and basket are stock images and their significance is explained further in the main post.   It was very difficult for me to get any form of Indigenous approval for this project as none of the elders I reached out to responded, which meant I had to be very careful including any Indigenous content. I decided to show the couple strictly as small silhouettes which I created by finding stock images of an Aboriginal woman and colonial man and filling their shapes with black. I wanted to include other references to Indigenous culture of the time but could not do so without permission. The final image: [caption id="attachment_4483" align="aligncenter" width="960"] (Apologies as my website has a terrible habit of making images look fuzzy)[/caption]  

This project is supported by the Regional Arts Development Fund (RADF) which is a partnership between theQueensland Government and Moreton Bay Regional Council to support local arts and culture in regional Queensland.

I chose Lake Samsonvale as a subject for my 'The Land and I' project because the history of Samsonvale has virtually been erased by the creation of North Pine Dam so I wanted to pay homage to the community that one stood there by compositing houses rising from the water. If you've not seen the project already, please visit the 'Stories of Lake Samsonvale' page at Visit Moreton Bay Region. Lake Samsonvale provides a number of visitor areas so during my initial site recce I chose 'Tukuwompa Park' as the most picturesque to photograph. I came back one evening at sunset to photograph it as I wanted to use the symbolism of the 'sun setting on the community'. I visited a second time on an overcast day to capture images for the travel blog and figured I might as well shoot the scene again with moody clouds just so I had some options. I also took some panoramas at Bullocky Rest because, as it's the main visitor area, I figured it would also be the most recognisable. After much experimentation I ended up using the photos from Bullocky Rest in the final image because I liked the banks on either side. [gallery columns="2" size="large" ids="4455,4456"]   The houses were all photographed at Old Petrie Town as I really wanted to include authentic historical houses from around the region and felt it was important to include the few remaining houses that were moved from Samsonvale before the dam was built. It was extremely tough organising a time to shoot there as it's a very busy place, complicated by weeks of rain which continually hampered my plans. As the deadline loomed I decided to shoot at 6am on Good Friday. It was raining as we drove to Old Petrie Town but thankfully it eased for the few hours I was shooting and began again just as I finished. Thank you weather gods! Each house was photographed from the top of a ladder because I needed to get the angles right. Many thanks to my assistant, Mum, who is always a trooper in these situations. And also to Nicholas Dodd for his help providing background information on Old Petrie Town.   [gallery columns="2" size="large" ids="4457,4458"]   In Photoshop I stitched the panorama of Lake Samsonvale, cut out each of the houses and created their reflections, then added the fisherman, flying geese, trees and sunset sky. The colouring took weeks of experimentation to get right and I'm still not convinced (I even made three new colour variations today even though I "technically" finished this image weeks ago!). The final(ish) result:    

This project is supported by the Regional Arts Development Fund (RADF) which is a partnership between theQueensland Government and Moreton Bay Regional Council to support local arts and culture in regional Queensland.

A visit to Lake Samsonvale offers tranquillity not always found at the region’s busier destinations making it an ideal spot to soak up some nature away from the crowds. The area is accessible from sunrise to sunset with all the facilities you’ll need to celebrate a family occasion or merely enjoy an outdoor lunch. You’ll find BBQs, picnic tables and playgrounds at both McGavin View and Bullocky Rest (named as this was once a resting point for bullock teams travelling the Old North Road). [gallery size="large" ids="4424,4423,4430"]   Fishing in the lake is said to be world class provided you have the appropriate permit. Members of the Lake Samsonvale Water Sports Association are allowed to operate paddlecraft but there is strong talk that this will soon open up the public. Swimming is not permitted as Lake Samsonvale is the primary water supply for Moreton Bay and north Brisbane. For hikers there’s a 4.2km (one way) bushwalking trail that links Bullocky Rest to Forgan Cove. Bird watchers and photographers will delight at the range of water birds.   [gallery columns="2" size="large" ids="4425,4421"]   Whatever activity you choose, as you gaze upon the calm waters of Lake Samsonvale, spare a thought for the once thriving community that called this land home.   Tukuwampa was originally home to the Garumngar people but was later given its official name, Samsonvale, by William Joyner who in 1845 leased approximately 400 square miles of land south of the North Pine River, extending from Moreton Bay to the D’Aguilar Range. Mr Joyner died two years later aboard the ‘Sovereign’ when it was wrecked near Stradbroke Island. His widow, Isabella, moved from Sydney to continue working the land. She later married John Griffin, owner of Whiteside, the adjoining run north of the river, and the two stations began to operate as one. Three generations of the Joyner family resided in Samsonvale for 104 years until 1945. [caption id="attachment_4432" align="aligncenter" width="1000"] Home of the Joyner family at Samsonvale, photographed by Henry Gold. Image courtesy of Moreton Bay Regional Council, Image ID 375192.[/caption]   These large runs were soon subdivided into 160 acre plots selling for the price of 2 shilling 6 pence bringing an influx of settlers consisting mainly of English, Scottish, Irish and German immigrants to work the land. In 1870 Henry Gold established his property on the banks of Kobble Creek. Being centrally located he housed and operated the Samsonvale Post Office and the manual telephone exchange. He also provided land for the school, church and cemetery. The Gold family became one of the most prominent in the area occupying the region for 106 years. During World War II an army camp and three airfields were established in the area. The Winn family volunteered 250 acres to the Women’s Land Army, whose purpose was to train women in farm work so they could continue the work of the men who had joined the services. When Australian Paper Manufacturers selected Petrie as a proposed site for operations, their need for vast quantities of water, combined with population growth in the Redcliffe and Pine regions, inspired discussions about the region’s need for a dam. As a result Pine Rivers Shire Council dammed Sideling Creek to create Lake Kurwongbah and the Australian Paper Mill began operations in 1957. The mill eventually closed in 2013 and will soon become a university precinct.   It was quickly realised that Lake Kurwongbah would not meet the future demands of Brisbane’s water requirements and planners secretly undertook further surveying around the North Pine River with the view of creating a much larger dam. In 1957 one of Samsonvale’s property owners discovered a caveat on his land title warning that the property was marked as a site for a future water storage scheme. Word spread among other land owners who checked their titles and found the same caveat. A public meeting was called and residents were advised that 98 properties would be affected by the proposed dam with construction estimated for 15 years’ time. Due to the long lead time and concern about the project’s effect on property values the State Government offered to buy the affected farms and half of the region’s pioneering families departed.   The Government eventually decided that the project was too big for the Pine Rivers Shire Council and brought in Brisbane City Council to manage it. BCC failed to honour previous agreements by refusing to acquire any remaining properties until the project was due to begin. The families who chose to stay because their land was only going to be partially affected received their resumption notices in 1971 and found that their whole properties were to be resumed, in contradiction to what they were initially advised. Owners were offered inadequate pay outs (with the excuse that their land was not worth much since it was due to be resumed) which barely covered the costs of purchasing property elsewhere. Many families suffered through drawn out legal battles for some form of satisfactory resolution.   North Pine Dam (also known as Lake Samsonvale in memory of the community) opened in 1976 at a cost of $20 million. Sealed roads were built to provide easy access to the dam but an oversight caused Basin Road to cut in half a well preserved Aboriginal Bora Ring system. Later, Aboriginal groups lobbied to protect what remained but the water board rejected the proposal. Back in the 1870s when Henry Gold was first clearing his land he had the foresight to conserve three acres of original Hoop Pine which he fenced to prevent damage from cattle. The BCC agreed to preserve this area which is one of the only surviving Hoop Pine forests in South-East Queensland. It is now called ‘Gold’s Scrub’ and is located near the lovingly maintained Samsonvale Cemetery on the opposite bank to Bullocky Rest. A persistent climbing plant, Cat’s Claw, began to spread among the native Hoop Pines but after several complaints the Commonwealth Government allocated $75,000 (more than the Golds were offered for their entire farm) for volunteers to clear the pest. [gallery columns="2" size="large" ids="4420,4428"]   In the words of Ken Gold from his book A Boy from Samsonvale … “And so we can sum up this North Pine project as having a profound effect on a large area of land and the people who lived and worked on it. City people can bathe, wash clothes and cars, drink and cook, water their gardens and fill their swimming pools because a community profoundly disturbed made a significant sacrifice.” Inspiration for my Lake Samsonvale image - from the 'Land and I' series While North Pine Dam is a necessity for the region, I was deeply moved by the many stories I read of the people displaced by its creation. I’ve visited Lake Samsonvale a number of times without realising the history that lies beneath it and wanted to create an image to show people that there is much more to the lake than its calm surface. It’s a compelling thought that under the lake sits rusty remnants of generations of lives and that these treasures occasionally surface when water levels are low. I wanted to include the fisherman going about his pastime seemingly unfazed by the houses rising from the waters in front of him. The houses in the image are all preserved historical houses photographed at Old Petrie Town. Included are notable properties such as the Kriesch family’s slab barn which was an original Samsonvale property, and Yebri House from the Petrie family’s homestead.

I invite you to share your own stories, photos and experiences of North Pine Dam and the Samsonvale community in the comments below so we can create a living history of this serene place for future generations.

This project is supported by the Regional Arts Development Fund (RADF) which is a partnership between the Queensland Government and Moreton Bay Regional Council to support local arts and culture in regional Queensland.

A little over four years ago I was standing in the kitchen and noticed how lovely the light was hitting my mother's desk so naturally I had to climb under it and take some self-portraits. It was only the second time I'd ever taken artistic self portraits and I was pleased that there were some really beautiful poses among them. I love the glowing skin, the pop of the pink and my face hidden in darkness. [gallery columns="2" size="large" ids="4395,4397,4396,4394"]   However those photos, along with many, many others have sat on my hard drive all this time, unseen by anyone but me. A couple of times I've tried to make something of them but the ideas never really took off. [gallery size="large" ids="4399,4400,4398"]   I actually really like that third image but I could never quite work out why an angel would be trapped in a jar. If my stories don't make sense I will abandon them. It's frustrating because I've seen plenty of beautiful images from other photographers that have no story or make no sense, but I personally need my images to be believable, despite their strangeness. Recently I thought I'd have one more go at it and by giving the image a more renaissance toning it began to go in a direction I was happy with. My mother loves angels so I've grown up surrounded by them. She even pins an angel brooch to her outfit every single day. Only natural then that one would eventually creep into my work. For me, the story here is about an angel who feels overburdened by modern society. No one is truly good or truly bad and I feel like those lines blur even more as time marches on. If we take the seven deadly sins - pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath and sloth - I know that I, personally, commit at least one of these sins daily (mainly gluttony thanks to chocolate) but fundamentally I believe I'm a good person despite this. I'm not religious at all but I'm well acquainted with the bible and if there IS a heaven and hell, how difficult would it be to unravel the complexity of a human mind and proclaim it either good or bad? Particularly when the decision results in an eternity of either reward or torture. So yes, I feel like this angel is trying to hide herself away from the overwhelming burden of her position, hence the name 'A Burden Too Big To Bear'. The ground was photographed at Mt Cook in New Zealand. I chose it because of the golden tone of the grass. Her wings are from a swan in London's Kensington Park. The sky is a mixture of several layers. [gallery size="large" ids="4401,4402,4403"] The end result!  

For some time now I've been feeling the call of the wild, a desire to run off into the woods and shack up in a log cabin away from society. As urbanisation consumes the natural world and disillusionment with consumerism and 'stuff' grows I've noticed that more and more people are sharing this desire. I've been reading about people with similar interests, starting with Barbara Newhall Follett's, 'A House Without Windows', a novel about a girl who leaves her family to live in the forest. The book was published in 1927 when Barbara was just 12 years old. At 35 she walked out of her home and was never seen again. Currently I'm reading 'The Nature Fix: Why nature makes us happier, healthier and more creative' highlighting the studies of leading scientists into nature's effects on health, crime and productivity. It's fascinating stuff and I hope to explore it further in a forest based series I plan to work on next year. Lacking the funds and the means to find a forest home of my own I decided to book into O'Reilly's Rainforest Retreat in Lamington National Park. Here I spent four days alone wandering by waterfalls and through ancient forests in an effort to soothe my soul and unload some of life's burdens. Forest bathing, or Shinrin-yoku as it is called in Japan where the term was coined, truly is magical and I long for a time when I have a little forest of my own. I hope the intent of the image is obvious in that, by spending time in nature, it causes us to bloom ourselves. This image was photographed in two spots. The pose was taken from me draped over an Antarctic Beech tree estimated to be thousands of years old.     The location was photographed near one of the waterfalls along the Box Forest Circuit.     A really cool little feature of this image is that if you look closely between the two centre rocks and behind the middle one you'll see streaks of white and blue. This is the Lamington Spiny Crayfish which only lives in this part of the world. [gallery columns="2" size="large" ids="4366,4365"]   I've released the image to coincide with Earth Day, the focus of which for 2018 is reducing plastic pollution and being mindful about your consumption of single-use plastics such as plastic bottles, cling wrap, food containers, cups and straws. We have lost so much of the natural world but as governments start to realise the healing benefits of green spaces we can all do our part to preserve what remains.    

When I was 16 I overheard someone in an elevator say ‘why waste the emotion’.  At the time I was riddled with teenage angst and thought this was the most profound thing I’d ever heard. I adopted it as my mantra, my security net against the world, and slowly taught myself to repress the messy and unnecessary emotions that come from not only being human but also an empath. After two decades of practice I’ve become a fairly unemotional person. I am an INTJ anyway, the type of introvert who prefers reason to feelings (hence why I like to categorise myself), and I’ve learnt to avoid situations that require emotional expenditure. I refuse to watch sad or scary movies, I have little to no desire for a relationship let alone children, and I keep my friends at an arm’s length. I do these things unconsciously and I’m certainly not proud of them but I’ve had to make peace with the way I am. Naturally as a black hearted ice queen I’ve built up a fairly impenetrable fortress with bricks made of cynicism and distrust. So you can imagine my surprise when I found someone had snuck through my defences. This series is about a heart that starts to feel again and the tidal surge of emotion that comes after decades of repression. It’s also, in part, about the need for an artist to bleed to create meaningful art. I want the images to portray something beautiful, about broken and hardened hearts that begin to heal and awaken; about that delightful moment when something or someone touches your heart profoundly. These are the messages I will send these images out into the world with. The reality though is much darker. The reason the security of my fortress failed is because it was not equipped for the small percentage of people who operate differently from the rest of us. This is how I became briefly entangled with my first and last narcissist; that particular breed of toxic human who feeds on the emotions of others. When you’re cautious about guarding your feelings there is no worse person you could invite into your life than these masters of manipulation. But empaths and narcissists are drawn to each other because they both have high emotional intelligence, it’s just that one uses this skill to heal while the other uses it to destroy. Thankfully I quickly realised what I was dealing with and was able to escape with only slight emotional bruising. That story might inspire my next series. I read a lovely quote on a blog that said ‘narcissists can be like angels in disguise. They are catalysts of change in people’s lives: they stir up all the old wounds, scars and shadow elements in a person and force growth.’ This sums up perfectly what this work is actually trying to convey. [gallery size="medium" link="file" ids="4312,4314,4313,4315,4318,4317,4319,4316,4320"] [caption id="attachment_4311" align="aligncenter" width="300"] When I realised it was all lies[/caption]  

How I created ‘All the times my heart awoke’

After the success of my 2017 calendar and the many requests to create another for 2018 I am proud to announce my new calendar is ready! My 2018 collectible calendar features double exposures of some of my favourite animals and landscapes. Creating double exposures is one of the most fun things to do in Photoshop allowing you to sandwich images together with different parts showing through. You can learn how to do it here. [gallery size="medium" ids="4258,4259,4257"]   The calendar makes a thoughtful Christmas gift for every animal or art lover and will pretty up your home the whole year through. It looks great printed on 200gsm glossy paper and is personalised for Australia's notable dates and climate but can be changed if you'd like to purchase one for another country (just let me know where you live). At only $20 Australian (a measly $15USD or $11.50GBP) plus $10AUD for local postage or $20 worldwide it's the most affordable way to collect my prints! Purchase through me directly (via my contact page or send me a message on Facebook).     Here's the images featured in the calendar in the order they appear. You can click on each to see them full size. [gallery size="medium" link="file" ids="4267,4266,4265,4270,4264,4268,4269,4263,4271,4262,4261,4272"]   Wishing you strength for the festive season. May it be the merriest yet! x

When I was a child the neighbourhood kids and I would spend our free time riding bikes among the surrounding bushland. Although our street was branded a dead end if you ventured beyond the road signs you’d find yourself in wild terrain full of life where brumbies roamed and snakes slithered across your path. Inspired by the features of the landscape I used to make up stories for the other kids about how the land came to be. I wouldn’t say I was a natural storyteller but something about that place worked its way under my skin. Ever since I’ve wanted to travel around Australia with a dream of creating stories in our iconic landscapes to give the landscape a voice and inspire others to share and build their own stories in these natural settings. Australians have a long history of storytelling whether it be Dreamtime or “spinning a yarn”. It’s a framework we create to feel a sense of connection, both to the land and to other people, to the past and the present. Our Indigenous ancestors felt a deep spiritual connection with country fostered through the sharing of stories yet people of the present day experience a disconnect between themselves and the land; it’s merely something to plunder and urbanise. ‘The Land and I’ project is a photographic series that brings stories inspired by local history and Indigenous culture to life using iconic Australian landscapes as a backdrop with the intention of highlighting places of natural beauty to instil a sense of community pride that ensures these spaces will be protected and treasured. We need to be educated about and reminded of the histories, memories and stories our landscapes contain and keep a record of not just people but also place. I intend the works to become talking points for the community, inspiring others to visit these locations and make or share their own stories, photos and artworks, ultimately encouraging a sense of belonging and promoting reverence for our natural environment. These will be collected in an online cultural repository that attempts to capture the sights, sounds, smell and feel of these natural environments throughout time from a variety of viewpoints for the benefit of future generations. Initially I will flesh out the concept using locations within the Moreton Bay Region, experimenting with lighting, framing and set design, working with amateur models and costumes created myself to establish the look and feel for the series. In the long term I plan to expand this project all over Australia, working with locally sourced talent in partnership with sponsors, government funds, and tourism boards to raise awareness. See the project here

[caption id="attachment_3358" align="alignright" width="300"] 'There Was' by Charles Blackman[/caption] If I haven’t mentioned it before my favourite artist is Charles Blackman and, in particular, his Schoolgirls and Angels series. He manages to imbue his simple paintings with this lonely darkness that I just adore. And it’s a theme that all my favourite art pieces seem to have in common. Lonely darkness. Anyway, recently I learned how to make a photo of day look like night. It’s really simple. Basically you drop your exposure and blacks and add an overall blue tone, but for some reason I’d never been able to figure out how to do it, and not for lack of trying. Sometimes the simplest Photoshop tricks completely elude me. But now I finally have the tool I need to create my own lonely darkness.   [gallery columns="2" size="medium" ids="3361,3360"]   ‘The Stars are Falling’ was initially inspired by an episode of 'Angel' I watched long ago that featured a storyline where the sky rained with fire. It got me thinking about the moment of peace the world would experience when everyone looked to the sky wondering what was going on, before everything erupted into chaos. With all that has gone on in 2016, political upheaval, the deaths of so many icons, as well as personal struggles such as losing my job, alienating friends, and reaching a plateau with my art, it’s impossible to ignore that everything is changing. All of which has manifested in this image, ‘The Stars are Falling’. I started the year with an image that symbolises rebirth, ‘Metamorphosis’ and I feel as if this new image metaphorically completes that “circle of life”. [caption id="attachment_2869" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Metamorphosis[/caption]   The rooftop in the image is from the bakery of my favourite restaurant, ‘Harvest’, in Newrybar and was photographed during a road trip I took exactly a year ago. The ‘meteor’ is a stock photo sourced from Unsplash and is attributed to NASA. The girl is, of course, a self-portrait, photographed, as usual, in my backyard. [gallery columns="2" size="medium" ids="3354,3357,3356,3355"]   Happy New Year and here's to 2017 and whatever it shall bring. :)

For me every new year is a chance for reinvention so with 2017 on the horizon I have been going through a period of deep self -reflection. 2015 was the year I became an artist and I built a portfolio of 40 pieces that I’m very proud of. 2016 was the year I spent most of my time on marketing that body of work and as a result I only created 12 pieces. It has been a year of highs and lows; a year where I started to make money and gain recognition for my work but also, somehow, had no time to create art. [gallery size="medium" link="none" ids="2841,2869,2933"]   I’ve learnt so much about the art world—mainly that art is consumed differently from its hey-day in the 80s and yet it’s still trying to operate on an antiquated gallery-focused model. I’ve learnt that the art world, particularly in Australia, is divided between traditional and subversive and my work doesn’t fit into either box. The Internet has given artists the opportunity for wider reach but it’s also flooded with competition so I’ve spent the majority of my year learning about arts marketing and implementing different strategies with limited success. I’ve seen so many fellow artists become marketers and educators – setting up online courses, mastering email marketing funnels, trying to make their work go viral – all in the hope that they’ll begin to make serious money from their art but in the process they lose the essence of what it is to make art. I don’t want this to happen to me. I signed up to be an artist, not a teacher, not a marketer. So I’ve decided to stop buying into all this arts marketing crap and getting caught in the nets of people trying to capitalise on artists and instead focus on the things that make my heart sing. The one useful thing I’ve learned is to picture exactly what I want my life and my business to look like and then work towards that goal every day. This may surprise you but my ultimate goal is to travel and either get paid to do it or live off a passive income. In fact this line has been in my bio since day 1: “My dream is to travel around Australia creating photographic art in rural and iconic locations.” While I have been taking baby steps towards this goal, mainly through my travel Instagram account (@hayleyrtravels), it’s unlikely anyone looking at my art would even know this about me. That’s why in 2017 I want to launch something new. My four passions are photography, travel, art and writing, in that order, and so I’m trying to create something that combines all four. I don’t know exactly what it will look like and the experimentation process has been really hard because it’s a whole new way of thinking and working, and I’m the kind of person who gets frustrated if I’m not good at something right away. It feels weird to be back at the drawing board but I know if I keep at it something will come together eventually. The things I am working towards are:

• Travelling more
• Writing a blog about each place I travel to
• Creating a photo essay documenting my travels so I can pursue more landscape work
• Making art pieces created out of photographs I’ve taken in those locations