THE PROJECT

Subiaco: A Portrait is an artist-led public art project commissioned by the City of Subiaco, involving five photographic artists making new work depicting the suburb of Subiaco in Perth's inner-west in response to archival photographs from the 1980s and 1990s, which were commissioned by the City and are held in the Subiaco Museum. Part of this collection was made by a group of ECU student photographers, under the tutelage of Kevin Ballantine, in celebration of Australia’s Bicentenary. Others, by artists Sonya Sears and Michelle Taylor, were formally commissioned by the City to document significant changes in Subiaco's history.

Produced by participating artist Emma Pegrum with collaborative creative direction from participating artist Duncan Wright, the project sought to reflect on the themes and social values present in the archive and interrogate them anew with the contemporary commissions. The work explores the nature of institutions and work in Subiaco, as well as the enduring presence of community groups and clubs. It also considers housing, heritage, construction and the built environment, family and demography.

Artists were commissioned to explore specific thematics or locations, which were selected for their relevance to the current moment as well as for the capacity of these subjects to reveal not only how things have evolved, but also how historical practices of recording may have overlooked or marginalised some sociocultural experiences and perspectives. Through this process, the project explores the value (or fallibility) of image-making as sociohistorical documentation, and the role of photographers and commissioning bodies in shaping the cultural narratives such documentation captures, reflects and perpetuates.