Conceptual nominee

Through the Lens of a Quirky Imagination: A Phantasmagorical View of Pandemic Life

The Covid pandemic was one of the few truly global experiences of recent times and as the immediate impact begins to fade, now is the time to stop and reflect on our personal and shared experiences.

Each surreal tableaux vivant image is a metaphor commenting on aspects of the pandemic. Some are an irreverent jab at the lighter side of pandemic life and others comment on serious social issues which came to light.

How was your life impacted for better or worse and what, if anything, do you do differently now?

This project consists of a total of 23 images created under lockdown conditions, shot in a home studio with only one model from within the photographer's bubble, and using only props and costumes available in the house.

I trained in fashion design and technology in my early twenties and spent the intervening thirty years in the apparel industry. I have also published four novels and more recently, I began to experiment with photography and digital compositing. I make the costumes and accessories that feature in my images using mostly repurposed and recycled materials.

Through the mediums of photography and photo manipulation, I create visual myths and fairytales. The images are true and believable because they’re photographs but they are also impossible. Each image is ripe with symbolism and I invite you to suspend reality and immerse yourself in the fantasy.

Awards and accomplishments to date:

I have over 1,200 images on the major stock sites and my pictures appear on numerous book covers worldwide. I entered my first photo contest in 2020 and have so are achieved Honors (3) and Highly commended (1) in the 2020 North Shore Salon of Photography Competition, Highly Commended Art Section in 2020 Australasia's Emerging Photographers, Finalist in 3rd Boynes International Awards 2020. I held my first solo exhibition at Kumeu Arts Centre, Auckland, NZ in October 2020.