Natsky’s journey through loss showcased in new exhibition 

A NEW exhibition by Lismore photographer Natsky is a deeply personal collection of images that track how her life changed when her sister died from melanoma six years ago.

Natalie Barovsky (Natsky) will open Unfold at Flourish Gallery on November 1. It will be the first exhibition she has staged since her sister Melinda Beumont (M) died on Christmas Eve, 2018.

The exhibition is made up of photographs that document M’s harrowing treatment for cancer, the life-changing revelations Natsky made during a trip to Europe after her sister died, and life in Lismore, the place she called home for the longest period of her life.

The images documenting M’s treatment for cancer are confronting, Natsky said, but they tell an important story.

“She wanted me to take heaps of pictures of her going through her stuff. She knew she was dying,” she said. “But she was amazing how she helped people through it. She’s in my head now, helping me through it.”

The sisters shared a close relationship, so it was inevitable that Natsky’s life would change after M died.

However, the biggest shift in perspective came during a solo trip to eastern Europe.

“I thought I was OK. But I wasn’t. At times I felt like packing it in, but then I heard my sister’s voice urging me to see it through,” Natsky said.

She also remembers the long conversations with M that made her realise her sister knew she was gay long before she admitted it, despite being married to a man.

“M and I had lots of really big conversations about sexuality, and she planted the seed,” Natsky said. “My whole life altered. Perspectives shifted.”

M was 46 when she died and it made Natsky reflect on her life.

“You can’t waste time. You don’t know how long you’ve got.

I was just treading water, not having a life,” she said.

It’s taken six years to revisit the images and think about showing them to the public.

“I can go there now,” Natsky said. “It took time. It was too painful, debilitatingly painful.”

But now, Natsky is married to wife Cam and is ready to show her images to the world.

The exhibition runs until Friday, November 22.

Natsky is also embarking on a walk from Canberra to Sydney to raise money for the Australian Skin Cancer Foundation and is asking for donations in memory of her sister.

Go to https://jays-mission-melanoma-walk-2024.raiselysite.com/natalie-barovsky to donate.