Keeping with this years NAIDOC them ‘Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up! ‘ Blak Lens is proud to celebrate our first collection of works from First Nation photographers of Blak Lens, a survey of works for this years NAIDOC week celebrations in Narrm (Melbourne).
We all must continue to Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up! for systemic change and keep rallying around our mob, our Elders, our communities.
Whether it’s seeking proper environmental, cultural and heritage protections, Constitutional change, a comprehensive process of truth-telling, working towards treaties, or calling out racism—we must do it together.
It must be a genuine commitment by all of us to Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up! and support and secure institutional, structural, collaborative, and cooperative reforms.
It’s also time to celebrate the many who have driven and led change in our communities over generations—they have been the heroes and champions of change, of equal rights and even basic human rights.
Getting Up, Standing Up, and Showing Up can take many forms.
https://www.naidoc.org.au/awards/current-theme
ARTIST INCLUDE:
| Joshua Howlet |
Joshua Howlett is a photographer and proud Palawa man born and raised on unceded Bunurong and Wadawurrung land.Josh draws inspiration from the world as he sees it, the politics of day to day life, the human connection and street culture.Having shot for about 7 years now, he’s begun to focus primarily on fashion.He is currently working heavily with Mob in Fashion, an organisation that promotes, encourages and facilitates work for First Nations people in the fashion industry. He’s also proud to be associated with BlakLens, the only database of Indigenous Photographers in Australia. Josh is working on his first solo exhibition which he hopes to have in early 2023.
| Jacinta Keefe |
Jacinta Keefe is a proud Wiradjuri woman with blood ties from the Galari Bila (Lachlan River) in New South Wales. She is currently living and working in Naarm(Melbourne). She is a visual artist with a background in photography and a love of live music.
Jacinta graduated from The Victorian College of the Arts with a Bachelor of Fine Arts, Visual Arts Photography in 2015 from there she took a break from studying and art creating to pursue her love of live music photography.
| Bobbi Lockyer |
Bobbi is a proud Ngarluma, Kariyarra, Nyulnyuland Yawuru woman. I feel a deep affinity for country and community and use my art, fashion and photography as a platform to raise awareness of social justice issues, including Indigenous rights and women's rights. I find that creativity and community go hand in hand and one would not exist without the other, being able to use my art as a force for good in the world. My work blends my love for my community and dream for a better world with my creative soul and my passion for my homeland and all the amazing colours and iconic Pilbara landscapes that inspire me daily.
| Tiffany Garvie |
Tiffany Garvie is a Gunggari women. Her mother’s family are from South Central Queensland around Mitchell and the Maranoa River. Tiffany grew up on Yolngu country in Arnhem Land in the mining town of Nhulunbuy. With a background as an ABC trained radio broadcaster and producer, she has worked in mainstream and First Nations media, as well as corporate communications and marketing. Tiffany is an avid photographer, a finalist in the National Photographic Portrait Prize (2018), published poet, award winning songwriter and lover of live music. And, after lots of travel all over the world and Australia, she has finally settled and happily calls Naarm home where you will find her shooting any number of live music, festival and cultural events.
| Marley Morgan |
Marley Morgan is a proud Wiradjuri and Gamilaraay women who grew up on Wiradjuri and Gamilaraay/Yuwaalaraay country and is currently based on Gumbaynggirr Country, Coffs Harbour.
Marley’s photography highlights the beauty of First Nations Aboriginal families with a heavy focus on Aboriginal women, families and culture. The strength and resilience of her people to continue and revive cultural practices that were once prohibited serves as inspiration in Marley’s work, which aims to document and showcase the beauty of her people.
| Benjamin Warlngundu Ellis |
Benjamin Warlngundu Ellis is a Gudanji/Wambaya man of the northern Barkly Tablelands and inland freshwater Country of the Gulf of Carpentaria. Benjamin, a self-taught professional photographer, is especially passionate about the role First Nations arts and media industries play into the celebration of Ngarrinja (Blakfulla) identities; the body of his work devoted to championing Ngarrinja cultures, traditions and spiritual lands across this continent.
Benjamin possesses a canny ability to interface the elements of subject & space in a way that award his audience with a sense of ‘being there’. For that reason, through his discipline he has delivered on various significant cultural legacy projects, been featured in a number of publications both in print and online, and is regularly being sought for work at major First Nations festivals throughout the country.
“I love my work as a photographer documenting for and of ATSI arts & cultures across the country. I see this work as part of a political resistance toward colonialism and its institutions through my own practice to promote, advocate and celebrate Blakfulla cultures and identities through their own practices. Doing so is an assertion to how I identify as an Ngarrinja man in this country, to continue honouring the spirit & legacies of First Nations peoples.”
| Michael Jalaru Torres |
Michael is an Indigenous photographer and media professional from Broome, Western Australia, who is now currently based in Naarm Melbourne, Victoria.
As a Djugan and Yawuru man with tribal connections to Jabirr Jabirr and Gooniyandi people, he is inspired by the unique landscapes and people of the Kimberley region, which feature prominently in his work.
“My photography draws on my own stories and personal history and explores contemporary social and political issues facing Indigenous people. Much of my work involves conceptual and innovative portraiture and abstract landscape photography.
| Cole Baxter |
I’m a Noongar man, based on Whadjuk Noongar Country (Perth, Western Australia). Specialising in natural light portrait photography. I’ve been a photographer since 2015 and a sole trader since the end of 2020.
| Renee Smith |
Renee is a Palyku woman. Renee studied Fine Arts at Central TAFE in Perth where her interest in photography grew. Renee is currently residing in Albany and runs her photography and crochet arts business named Little Annie Bird since. She has photographed events for local schools, The Museum of the Great Southern and The City of Albany.
| Amber Hamer |
Amber Hamer is a proud Bundjalung and Biripi Woman based on Gumbaynggirr Country (Coffs Coast) Amber is passionate about working in Community and having an opportunity to have stories and traditions respectfully captured through photography and videography. Amber has a background in Community work, Events management and Communications.
'I feel so privileged to be able to see, hear and capture so many important stories and traditions from around our country'
| Stanley Francis |
Stanley Francis is a Nyul Nyul and Nyikina Mangala man from Broome Western Australia, His photography ranges from Landscape to Sports photography and everything in between and is also very eager to learn new styles of photography. Initially starting as a content creator on YouTube but has since moved to capturing still images rather than moving ones.
| Brendon Blacklock |
Attending Australian Film and Television School in 2011, Bredon went on to work on major film and television productions in the camera department. It was working in documentaries such as “Colour Theory”, “Servant or Slave” and “The Darkside” that he found his true passion. Brendan furthered his studies at Film School and went on to study Cinematography. Brendon created Blacklock Media in 2015 Since then Blacklock Media has shot numerous successful short films, music videos and documentaries.
| Lowell Hunter |
Lowell Hunter is saltwater man. He creates sand art and uses drone photography to capture the scale of his works within breathtaking landscapes. It all started as a way to get out on the beach and connect with culture, Country and sea. Lowell is a Nyul Nyul man from the Kimberleys in Western Australia, he Grew up on Gunditjmara Country in Warrnambool and now lives on Waddawurrung Country, Geelong. Each place has kept him connected to the ocean. He creates sand artwork using just his feet. Lowell carves stories into the sand using the same foot movements he was taught through dance, movements his people have practised for countless generations. The artworks tell stories of family, identity and connection. Lowell was taught his dances from the age of 10 and has performed in South Africa, China and New Zealand. Today he passes this knowledge on to young Aboriginal men through Wan-Yaari, a company he co-founded to deliver mentoring, cultural programs cross-cultural training.