The 9th edition of Sydney’s Head On Photo Festival (4-20 May) features a stellar line up of international and local photographers with an exciting program of works that celebrate the complex applications of the medium. More than 700 photographers are participating this year, from over 22 countries.
In the field of photojournalism there are few women as accomplished as multi-award-winner, American Paula Bronstein. Over a career that spans decades as both a staff photographer, most recently for Getty, and as a freelancer, Bronstein has earned her stripes in the field of conflict reportage covering important stories including most recently the continuing Rohingya humanitarian crisis. Her extensive oeuvre includes a 15-year documentation of the many facets of Afghanistan and a selection of this work from her book Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear is on show at Head On for the first time, featuring both familiar and new narratives on a country that continues to be ravaged by war.
“Every time you see Afghanistan in the news these days it is about bombings,” says Bronstein. “That gives you a particular perception of the country, but what’s going on in Afghanistan is not that simple and I hope this exhibition imparts a sense of the complexity of the country.”
Certainly there are a number of Bronstein’s photographs that move the narrative beyond that of conflict. In particular the photographs of young women in beauty parlours and a bridegroom waiting for his fiancé in a stretch limousine shift the dial on the stereotypical image of Afghanistan. So does the line of swan paddleboats that sit against the shore of one of the lakes in the breathtakingly beautiful Band-e-Amir National Park in the centre of the country. But Bronstein’s body of work is not a soft sell on this troubled nation and there are numerous images that leave the viewer with no doubt that those living in Afghanistan are burdened by great hardships, particularly women and children.
James Whitlow Delano, another award-winning photojournalist, showcases work from his series Normalizing Extrajudicial Murder in the Philippines, which tells the stories of families affected by Philippines President Duterte’s War on Drugs. Delano asks:“Why should we tell the story of Jasmine Dorana, a 15-year old mother left widowed after her teenage husband was shot four times in the head in front of her? Why should people care about Remy Fernandez, an 84-year-old grandmother left to raise seven grandchildren after their father was executed by masked gunmen sent to the slums to kill him in his own living room? We tell these stories because we are human, because by not knowing their story and not exposing these worst of crimes, we become complicit…sanctioning these crimes with our silence.”
Italian documentary photographer Emanuele Amighetti’s Unrecognized Nation, Forgotten War focuses on the young Artsakh citizens of the Nagorno-Karabakh region, which is the subject of an unresolved dispute between Azerbaijan, where it is located, and its ethnic Armenian majority, supported by Armenia on its border. These young girls and boys are forced at the age of 13 to become soldiers in this “frozen conflict” that receives little attention from western media in particular.
2018 marks the 16th anniversary of the first “War on Terror” prison’s opening at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba (known as Gitmo after its military call letters, GTMO). American Debi Cornwall is a conceptual documentary artist and her work Welcome to Camp America: Inside Guantanamo Bay provides a fascinating insight into this notorious US Naval Station. This exhibition provokes questions about the political machinations in the so-called “War on Terror” and takes the viewer inside spaces previously off limits.
Belgian photojournalist Alain Schroeder’s documentation Living for Death explores the unique death rituals of Toraja people in Indonesia, who keep their loved ones close in life and in death. Following the rice harvest each year in August, the Toraja pay homage to their ancestors, removing them from their coffins, changing their outfits, even applying make up and accessories such as sunglasses and hats in the ritual known as ma’nene. The Toraja are not in any hurry to bury their dead either and often a deceased family member will remain in the home for years until a funeral is organised, after which the person’s death is officially acknowledged.
In an exhibition of never-before-seen photographs, Patti Boyd, who was married to both Eric Clapton and George Harrison, presents George Harrison, Eric Clapton & Me: The Photography of Patti Boyd, delivering an intimate glimpse into life with these two British music legends.
Chinese artist, Peng Xiangjie’s explores Chinese Manga festivals in the series Cosplay. Shot in black and white on medium format film and printed by the artist, these images have an historical quality to them even though they are contemporary works, further adding to the depth of the narrative.
American Nancy Borowick’s The Family Imprint, is an extraordinary body of work that captures the journey of her parents as they underwent treatment for stage-four cancer together. It’s a story “about life and love more than cancer and death,” says Nancy, a story that is both heartbreaking and heart-warming.
Moving on from the photojournalism and documentary exhibitions, Australian photo artist Samantha Everton showcases her new work the sumptuous Indochine, a series of complex portraits that visually bridge the realms of reality and fantasy to explore notions of female identity and cultural traditions. Everton’s work is exquisite and represents 18 months of intensive research before a two-week shoot in Saigon. Everton commissioned the beautiful handprinted Chinoiserie wallpapers that feature as backdrops and Cirque de Soleil’s Larry Edwards designed the neckpieces. These illuminating and stunning images are demonstrative of the mature practice of one of Australia’s best-known visual artists.
Another very talented Australian visual artist is Emma Hack, who won international acclaim with her amazing body painting work, which featured in Grammy Award winner Gotye’s music video Somebody I Used to Know. Through a combination of painting on canvas, body painting and studio-based photography, Hack creates unique works that camouflage the human form, drawing inspiration from Australian flora and fauna, as well as Oriental influences. Head On presents two of her extraordinary series, Flight of Fancy and Geometric.
Two other notable Australian shows are Olivia Martin-Maguire’s Double Happiness, which explores China’s 80 billion dollar wedding industry and in particular, the fad of pre-wedding photography; and photographer and writer, Stuart Spence brings the sense of the absurd with his series When A Man Snaps, capturing odd and quirky moments in life that most of us don’t notice.
Chinese artist Sheila Zhao’s The East Was Red considers the power of political messaging by reinterpreting photographs she found from the Chinese Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). Zhao says the collection is named after one of the most popular songs of the time. She uses the colour red to highlight the political motifs in each of the photographs – a Mao Zedong pin, statue or poster as an example – to explore ideas of indoctrination, propaganda and censorship.
An unusual take on the controversy over American gun laws and ownership can be seen in the conceptual work of Garrett Hansen. In HAIL, which has four parts – The Void, The Silhouettes, The Bullets and Memorial – Hansen has created images from individual bullet holes using replicas of cardboard targets contact printed in the darkroom. His exhibition features 12 panels each of which record by the month every homicide involving a gun that occurred in the state of Kentucky. Hansen says: “The viewer is presented with images that speak to the sublime – they are both attractive and terrifying at the same time. In many ways, this reflects our own opinions of guns in America, a country where the debate between rights and controls continues to rage.”
And finally there is Jamey Stillings’ Changing Perspectives: Renewable Energy and the Shifting Human Landscape, which features aerial and ground-based photography of global renewable energy developments that use the sun, wind and tides to create sustainable energy solutions. Stillings, who has enjoyed a 30-year career in both documentary and commercial photography, shows how these large-scale projects have a grace and majesty particularly when viewed from above.
This year Head On is concentrated around the inner-city locale of Woollahra, with the Paddington Town Hall the Festival Hub. Festival director Moshe Rosenzveig says the programming of exhibitions within close proximity to each other means that festival goers will be able to see numerous shows and really immerse themselves in the festival vibe.
Alison Stieven-Taylor
Alison Stieven-Taylor is a writer specializing in photography based in Melbourne, Australia.
Head On Photo Festival
4-20 May 2018
Various venues
Sydney, Australia
www.headon.com.au
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