The Australian Centre for Photography (ACP) has dedicated its spring exhibition season to photojournalism and documentary photography. In partnership with the Reportage Festival of Photography, the ACP is showcasing four internationally acclaimed photographers whose work focuses on global, social and political issues.
Netherlands-based photojournalists Robert Knoth and Antoinette de Jong, have produced a multimedia installation titled Poppy – Trails of Afghan Heroin, which investigates the life cycle of the poppy trade from production in Afghanistan to users in London. This contemporary documentary, embodying two decades of reporting from 12 countries, outgrew conventional and short forms of journalism – necessitating its own, more immersive experience. Shown on four multimedia panels, the installation combines still and moving imagery, official reports, audio and video excerpts all of which provide a powerful narrative about the global impact of the Afghan heroin trade and the devastation that follows in its wake.
Poppy field in Balkh, Afghanistan. From the exhibition 'Poppy - Trails of Afghan Heroin, 2014'. Photo by Robert Knoth and Antoinette de Jong.
Balkh province, Afghanistan. From the exhibition 'Poppy – Trails of Afghan Heroin, 2003'. Photo by Robert Knoth and Antoinette de Jong.
South African documentary photographer, Jodi Bieber’s exhibition Between Darkness and Light, provides a unique view of South Africa’s transition from apartheid to the lasting legacy of Nelson Mandela. Beiber’s exhibition marks the 20th anniversary of democracy in South Africa and is curated from two of her outstanding photographic series, Between Dogs and Wolves: Growing up with South Africa and Soweto.
Vredepark, Johannesburg, 1998. Photo by Jodi Bieber.
Orlando West Swimming Pool, Orlando West, 2009. From the exhibition 'Soweto'. Photo by Jodi Bieber.
Australian-born, New York-based photojournalist, Ashley Gilbertson’s photographic documentary, Bedrooms of the Fallen, focuses on the personal cost of war expressed in photographs of bedrooms left behind by men and women who died in conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. After covering the war in Iraq for six years and a personal encounter with death, Gilbertson pushed his photography in a new direction conceiving Bedrooms of the Fallen in 2007 as a way to memorialise soldiers and marines who died in Iraq. It was later expanded to include casualties from Afghanistan in 2009. Gilbertson is an award-winning photojournalist with VII photo agency, New York. His work is held in the collections of the National Gallery of Victoria, the National Library of Australia and the Museum of Contemporary Photography, Chicago.
Marine Corporal Chistopher G.Scherer, 21, was killed by a sniper on July 21, 2007, in Karmah, Iraq. He was from East Northport, New York. His bedroom was photographed in February 2009. Photo by Ashley Gilbertson.
Army Corporal Brandon M.Craig, 25, was killed by a roadside bomb on July 19, 2007, in Husayniyah, Iraq. He was from Earleville, Maryland. His bedroom was photographed in February 2010. Photo by Ashley Gilbertson.
ACP’s spring exhibitions are open to the public until 26 October 2014. The Australian Centre for Photography (ACP) is located at 257 Oxford Street, Paddington.