Gayle Maddigan - Displacement/Embracement

For the last 20 years, Indigenous artist Gayle Maddigan has sought to define and re-define Aboriginal Australians through her painting and photography. Her art practice has been driven by a desire for social justice for her people. Displacement/Embracement, her latest body of photographic work, depicts Aboriginal women from communities throughout Victoria. These are women from Maddigan's own bloodlines and kinship.

The strength of these black and white portraits lies in their honesty and in the dignity they afford their subjects. These are real women going about their everyday life. Throughout the work, the closeness of family relationships and the importance of community are revealed. Maddigan's images redress the imbalance of images made by non-Indigenous photographers. They aim to celebrate the strength and integrity which Aboriginal women have managed to maintain despite being largely displaced and dispossessed by white society.