Drown in images at St Andrews

WHILE curating the shows for this year’s Ballarat International Foto Biennale, artistic director Fiona Sweet was looking for photographers with a “different approach.”

“I wanted to give audiences an idea of where photography is moving to, and the kinds of interesting directions photography is working towards,” she said.

“Dutch artist Erik Kessels looks at photography not so much through the lens of a traditional camera but conceptually; what does the photography mean?”

Showcasing his work in St Andrew’s Uniting Church, BIFB secured the 24HRS in Photos installation for the 2021 festival, which passholders can enjoy.

Featuring big piles of printed images – approximately 380,000 – the piece represents the number of photographs uploaded onto Flickr and put into the “public realm” in a 24-hour period.

“Erik Kessels’ exhibition is something we need to look at to respond to this extensive use of images, whether it be from a smart phone or any other digital format,” Ms Sweet said.

“Three hundred and eighty thousand is just an enormous amount of images, without context, without explanation, and they’re uploaded to share with people they know, and that they don’t know.

“Drowing in images is a reflection of our time. People will be overwhelmed my these mounds of photographs.”

Kessels has previously exhibited at major photographic festivals internationally in France, Germany, Switzerland, England and Canada, and rejects the idea of showcasing his work in more traditional “white box” gallery settings.

“Come and have a look and share your experience on social media. Erik would love to see that,” Ms Sweet said.