We have world-class artists living locally, and photographer David Starr’s latest exhibition is an unmissable examination of the space between life and death, as represented by the stark landscape that remains after a bushfire. Here’s the philosophy behind his work and where you can see his artwork.
David Starr is a Sydney-based photographer who is also a film photographer working with transparency and negative film. In 2008, he transitioned to digital media. His first group exhibition was in 1996 and surveyed androgynous forms of nudes and flowers. Since then he has had ten solo exhibitions, which have explored nature, the female nude, Australian landscapes and European cities.
The stark landscape seems populated by ghosts. (David Starr)
The Kosciusko bushfires of 2003 ravaged the NSW Snowy Mountain region leaving a hauntingly beautiful landscape. Leafless, white trunked trees left abandoned, stripped by the wind, bleached by the sun, stranded in silence. The stark landscape populated by ghosts, a reminder of resilience and impermanence in both the human condition and the natural environment.
The Australian landscape’s ability to recover from the devastation of bushfire is legendary. However, recovery takes time, but not all survive. Sydney photographer, David Starr, has documented the area over past three years to create an exhibition which explores the impact of decimation and time on a landscape; the space in between death and life.
Recovery takes time, but not all survive. (David Starr)
Through the medium of photography and soundscape, David Starr challenges contemporary culture’s unease with the conversation around death. This exhibition elevates the two great certainties of existence – life and death and asks the question, ‘can there be beauty in death?’
Essential Details:
- What: Cemetery of Trees by David Starr (presented as part of the 2019 Head On Photo Festival)
- When: Tuesday 14 May – Sunday 26 May
- Opening Night, Thursday 16 May 6.30pm – 8.30pm
- Artist’s Talk, Sunday 26 May 2pm – 3pm
- Where: Wallarobba Arts and Cultural Centre, 25 Edgeworth David Avenue, Hornsby
- Cost: Free
- More details: Cemetery of Trees Exhbition
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