Snippets of Moving Bodies

Original Image

One of my (few) goals this year is to propel my artistic development by exhibiting more. Well, I'm off to an excellent start with my first group exhibition of 2008 at New Works — Canberra's latest contemporary art gallery — opening on Thursday 21 February.

"Body Moves" is about human physicality, including dance, exercise and sport. I'm contributing two digital photomontages that mix recent images of swing dancing with vintage 1950s ephemera. The end result is a bright and quirky comment on male and female roles in the past.

I haven't finished the works, but can't resist sharing a sneak peek. Inspired by Karen Michel's techniques in the off-beat The Complete Guide to Altered Imagery, I've whipped out the sandpaper and soufflé markers and had a good scribble and gouge over photographs I took at a swing dance demonstration late last year. I've overlaid these in Photoshop with some fun printed material, including a cooking calendar from 1955 (featuring the most sumptuous-looking cup cakes) and illustrations from an old book of fairy tales.

After Hours of Work!

I must confess that I'm not sure how visually appealing I find the results, but the process was certainly enjoyable. I'll post the final images when they're finished.