The Exhibition

Geraldton Regional Art Gallery

Opening Night

Saturday 12th April 2014

This was an evening to remember as the gallery filled with country folk of whom it was the first time a lot had ever visited the gallery. The gallery staff were taken back by the large number of visitors to this opening night and the amount of noise being produced in their gallery as family and friends of the participants gushed with excitement and amazement at the quality of the images that were hanging on the gallery walls. Locals spent time lingering at many of the images trying to identify the participant and some were much harder to identify than others.

Throughout the evening there were many comments made about what an amazing and professional exhibition and many stories were shared of each individuals experience during the 'Hunting For Foxes' project.

After the exhibition was opened by Mrs Tarleah Thomas and Mrs Jenny Critch we captured many of the images below of participants with their image on the walls of the gallery and the celebrations continued long into the evening for some.

Mrs Belynda Mills - Bush Bather

Mrs Helen Byron - The Tea Party

Mrs Jenny Critch - Roadside Traveller

Mrs Jenna McGregor - Tattoo Beauty

Mrs Justina & Shayne Wells - Deck the Dance Hall

Mrs Justine Rowe - Runaway Bride

Mrs Karen Poyner - Milkmaid

Mrs Kathryn Park - Flower Rebirth

Ms Laura Byron - Baby Gaga

Mrs Melissa Tilyard - Long White Cloud

Mrs Tarleah Thomas - Perfection

The Celebration Dinner

Spring Park Farm Shearing Shed

August 2013

A dinner was held at the end of the Hunting For Foxes photo shoots to celebrate and share the outcomes of the first stage of this wonderful project.
A typical country shearing shed was transformed in an afternoon after the weather conditions hindered the previous plans to hold this dinner in an outdoor location. With much community spirit and many helping hands the shed was looking a million bucks and ready to host fifty women who had participated in the project.
With the mystery and curiosity built to a climax  over the past eight weeks no one had seen each others final images and this night was the night to reveal some of the images (but still not the final one - that was left until the exhibition!!) among this diverse group of women.
A large screen had been set up for us to project the photos onto so everyone could get a great view of the fantastic images that Carlo had captured of this group of women. Everyone sat back, with their drinks topped up ready to view the photos.  Participants were speechless to begin with as they began to identify and recognise each participant as they were projected onto the screen. People were amazed at the transformation of some participants and that they were hardly recognisable.

The food was catered for by Kathy who had travelled from Perth to serve us up some magnificent and tasty cocktail style finger food that she was able to cook onsite. It was definately the yummiest food I have eaten in a shearing shed!!

Some of the props from the photo shoots were brought along on the night and there was plenty of fun had by the participants who were reliving the fun and excitement of dressing up and they had certainly lost any fear of being in front of a camera!!

Regal in her Own Backyard

I went along to one of the very first Hunting for Foxes photo shoots in support of a friend who had orchestrated a moving and thoughtful shoot, with many props and hidden meanings. My sole purpose on this occasion was to load the delicate white tea cup with white wine to offer courage!! I was totally amazed by the process of Nat the photographer catching THE photo....and of the time and energy that had gone in to facilitating this shoot out on a deserted clay pan!!!

So when my photo shoot day arrived....I felt like a bit of a fraud! My concept was far from thoughtful and my only real prop was our living room chair which was to be carried outdoors...and of course the fox terrier if she decided to behave!

I shared the day with Sam who arrived in a whirl of tulle as Sarah Jessica Parker’s alter ego .We laughed and giggled like young school girls as we applied our makeup, teased our hair and tried to apply the false eyelashes actually on to the eye lid!! Sam’s shoot was in the morning so after a hearty lunch- my chair was carried out on to the edge of the breakaway just as the sun was starting to set.

I wanted the view from our house to become my living room, with a hunting theme so I could share the occasion with our much loved fox terrier. I was supposed to be relaxing in our lounge room chair on the edge of the breakaway country – with a medicinal evening drink in hand and the hound curled up at my feet!!

The purpose was to capture the landscape in my shoot and to just be a small part of that vista. We played with different angles and of course the dog who inspired the hunting gear was nowhere to be seen. So I felt very awkward as Nat tried to “create a moment” to give my shoot some purpose.

Enter: one curious husband in work clothes with disobedient fox terrier at heels!

The photo used for the cover of the book was one of our “fooling around” shots! Lucy, our foxy is quite terrified of guns so she “froze” when she saw me armed with a weapon. Pete stepped into the shot with dog under arm and Nat threw the bullet belt around him at the last moment. It only took a second- but with the setting sun and the whispering evening breeze- I had my photo.

It was such a fun day! I think the Hunting for Foxes project has achieved all it had hoped to in that each participant was for a moment in time- some one else!

Miriam Barnetson