Back to the Deserts of Coober Pedy
The South Australian desert was where my journey really began so it was very...
Collaborating with new people that you’ve never met before can often be a very rewarding and surprising experience. For the past three years I have been randomly connecting with people in all different manner of art forms or creative expressions to sit down with them over a coffee and then to document their day to day existence.
The most recent collaboration was with tonal realist portrait artist Avril Thomas who to be completely honest I had no idea of at the time so when we spoke on the phone I didn’t register the surprise in her voice when I suggested taking her portrait in her studio at Hope Forest in Meadows. It’s quite comical now that I think about it but at the time I felt a strong reverence in preserving the light and ambience of the room all the while capturing a natural unopposed portrait.
After a very freshly made coffee Avril then took me on a complete guided tour of Magpie Springs a multi faceted establishment boasting a winery, coffee lab, livestock, rock climbing wall and the fully functioning on site art gallery. I was really impressed with the amount of diversity within the property and the love that had clearly been poured into every element.
Thomas is determined to facilitate other artists within the walls of the art gallery hosting regular openings for various artists including a current exhibition by Rita Hall which runs until May 4th.
Proceeding this showing is the wineries annual Photography Prize which is curated by Avril and opens on May 11th which I took an image for during the visit using some dam water.
The portrait of Avril will be showing at the Royal Society of Arts ‘Characters of the Fleurieu’ on May 24th.