‘This ongoing body of work has been created in response to the inaccurate and often reductive representations of Aboriginal peoples created in post-colonial photographs. It explores my own identity as a Pitta Pitta woman and the construction of that identity through photography.” “These photographs are a pursuit for control and agency over my portrayal through self-portraiture, rendering myself visible within a medium that was historically used to misrepresent my people. Through the use of layering I have “submersed” myself back into Country – the landscape that is the link between my culture, tribal grounds and where I exist now. It acknowledges the importance of Country to cultural identity which was not represented in post-colonial photographs, but also the pain and yearning experienced when being away from this landscape. These are images of an embodied experience, and the embodiment of my culture. I employ photography as a tool to render my Aboriginal identity visible.” Jahkarli is a Melbourne based artist interacting and creating works with visual mediums such as photography and moving image. Working within a conceptually driven practice, Jahkarli unpacks and explores cultural identity and the complications of representation through technologies like photography. Jahkarli has recently graduated from a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Photography at RMIT and is keen to expand her knowledge and practice through the RMIT Photography Honours program in 2020. To see a full listing of Jahkarli’s latest work click here. Summer Projects VII runs until February 16th.
