Exhibition: Vantages by Shea Kirk

In Vantages, Kirk invites people to be photographed in his home studio in front of simple backdrops. Working with dual large format cameras, each portrait is exposed onto separate sheets of black and white film, simultaneously capturing two images of the sitter from slightly different perspectives, emulating the views of the left and right eye. The process is slow and methodical, enabling an intimate exchange between photographer and subject that highlights the agency of the sitters. Conscious of their own vulnerabilities, the subjects are aware of what it means to represent themselves, and through the very nature of this dual-imaging process, resist being reduced to a single vantage point.

Shea Kirk is a Melbourne-based artist working with traditional photographic methods and techniques. He won the National Photographic Portrait Prize 2020 Art Handlers’ Award, and has been shortlisted for prizes including the Olive Cotton Award (2019); National Photographic Portrait Prize (2019); Head On Portrait Prize (2018 & 2019); Bowness Photography Prize (2020), and participated in a number of group exhibitions across Victoria. He debuted the first selection of works from Vantages, an ongoing portrait series, at the Centre for Contemporary Photography (2019).

Dainesinger, Rear 90 Moor Street. Fitzroy until 13 March 2021