Exhibitions 2010
Ruth Keber, Megan Hermans, Faith Thiang
Emerging Photojournalists is an introduction to the works of Ruth Keber, Megan Hermans and Faith Thiang - three recently graduated photojournalists from Queensland College of Art, Griffith University.
Ghetto nights by Ruth Keber
The series Ghetto nights is a social commentary on dwellings, domestic spaces and tranquility throughout Soshanguve and Soweto in South Africa. A distance is established through the severe setting of night, which allows an uncertain ambiguity between both politics and violence and a calming atmosphere. Often misconceived as a place to fear, they were places where I felt most at home.
For the Love of the Club by Megan Hermans
Passion and dedication - these two words are synonymous with community groups and social clubs across Australia. This series unveils the intricate workings of a club, and looks at the dedicated members who make up the club. Each group is unique: from the tea-drinking ladies of the Country Women's Association to the gem enthusiasts of the local Lapidary club. All have a story to tell.
Lolita Culture by Faith Thiang
For my graduating portfolio in 2009, I was given the opportunity to document girls of
the Lolita fashion subculture in Brisbane and its surrounding suburbs.
The Lolita style is a street fashion developed around the late 1980s in Japan, generally influenced by traditional representations of femininity and decadence, including Marie Antoinetteʼs Rococo style and Victorian fashion, particularly the aesthetics of younger girlsʼ and dollsʼ clothing. The typical Lolita outfit consists of a blouse, a dress with the trademark bell-shaped skirt, socks, petticoats, bloomers, cute shoes, with plenty of lace, ruffles and matching accessories. There are many sub-styles of Lolita, with each creating a distinct look.
For the Lolitas, the fashion is a form of identity and expression, which is often misrepresented or confused for a costume. The sexy discourse and styles of Romantic Goth and French Maids often associated with Lolita are opposite of what it is meant to represent. Association with Vladimir Nabokovʼs novel of the same name may conjure correlations to seductive nymphets, while in reality the knee-length skirts and overwhelming volume of petticoats and bloomers actually combat this image. Lolitas aim to distinguish these negative connotations from their subculture, which projects who they are in a very distinct visual style. The style makes them feel pretty and confident and conveys a sense of anachronistic elegance, modesty and cuteness that is unusual to encounter on a Brisbane city street.
The images ask the viewer to consider what it means to be an individual in our society and study the often conflicting desire to belong.
Hopefully this series creates an awareness of the dress codes, attitudes and intent of this alternative fashion and unique subculture in order to give an insight to the world of Lolita.
