Miranda Douglas
November at Somedays Gallery presents
Kerryn Benbow, Miranda Douglas and Mark Elder DJINN & TONIC an exhibition showcasing photographs of culture, travel, the familiar and the hidden 11 November – 07 December 2009 Somedays Gallery, 72b Fitzroy Street, Surry Hills, SydneySydney based artists Kerryn Benbow, Miranda Douglas and Mark Elder – three cultural voyeurs becoming the observed – combine to create an antipodean view of social, cultural and geographical landscapes challenging the notion of dissension by bringing the viewer closer to humanity. Djinn & Tonic, will open Wednesday 11th November at Somedays Gallery and will run until 7th December 2009.
The three artists use images from around the world including Afghanistan, Australia, India, Mexico, Pakistan, Syria, Spain, Thailand, Tokyo and Turkey to explore their individual experiences of the world around them. Like the good or evil Djinn created by fire as opposed to clay like man, the photographers are but interlopers in another world, not always invisible like the Djinn but exposing their own playful and curious visual tonic to reveal the hidden and redefine the familiar.
Benbow uses “Geo-Mashups”, geographic layers of photography, to express unexplored worlds and her own sense of place. “I combine elements or people in their environments with layers of evocative scenery, both urban and natural, from diverse places, to explore the depths of the human experience within myself, and expose the unknown, whilst leaving interpretation to the viewer.”
Douglas arrives in Swine Flu infested Mexico and instead of discovering chaos she exposes a country calmly going about its day to day life in the eye of an epidemic. As the virus spread across the globe, Douglas spent time in the epicentre capturing an unchanged country with strong architecture, beautiful muxes – Mexican Transvestites – and colourful festivals “Through my images I like to explore the still as well as the moving and predominately how we humans fit in to the rich tapestry of cultures”.
Within his images, Elder explores eastern masculinity. “All of my relations in this part of the world are over-archingly male. What’s it like to be a man in a world where the rules and social norms wrap round you tighter than a drum? What’s it like to know that your chances of enjoying a long life are extremely low? How does it feel to look across the plains at the bottom of the Hindu Kush and know that you’re at the bleak end of a proud culture? Why do they have the most phallic-looking buildings?”
Three of Australia’s most original photographic artists – Benbow, Douglas and Elder – combine to capture layers of life through wonderfully observant images.
For more information please contact Bronwyn the Somedays Gallery manager bronwyn@somedays.net.au
Kerryn Benbow
Mark Elder