Anne Zahalka, one of Australia’s leading photographers, has turned her lens towards QVMAG’s historic dioramas. Lost Landscapes is the latest iteration in her series Wild Life, a project in which she unearths habitat displays from around Australia and re-imagines them to reflect contemporary concerns about the environment.
‘A pair of hybrid swamphens perform a mating act in front of
feathered friends. As ancestors of the now extinct Lord Howe
Island white swamphen, these colourful birds have flourished in
kanamaluka/Tamar River. Other threatened species such as the
green and gold frog and the rare chequered blue butterfly now
prosper in this preserved wildlife sanctuary. Patient twitchers (bird
watchers) stand in camouflaged hides capturing avian scenes in a
photographer’s paradise. While the wetlands have been reclaimed
and returned to their pristine beauty, the Pacific gull, known to feed
off nearby landfill, regurgitates anthropogenic waste they cannot digest.
Often found along the boardwalk, these boluses (the contents
ejected from the birds’ stomachs) contain plastics that re-enter
the waterway further contaminating the fragile ecology of marine
environments.’
Artist’s statement 2020
Unframed print – limited edition of 20
Pigment ink on archival paper – image size approximately 40cm x 47cm