Join us for the opening event of You Cannot Trust an Open Sky by Canberra photographer, Hilary Wardhaugh on Wednesday 16 July from 5.30pm.

All welcome!

Hilary Wardhaugh, A Meditation Of Death, 2024, pigment print, framed 81 x 142cm

You Cannot Trust an Open Sky is a body of work that responds to what the International Court of Justice calls a ‘plausible genocide’ of the people of Palestine.

The exhibition comprises a series of works including documentary photography, analogue lumen prints, digitised lumen prints, and film photography made between November 2023 and end 2024.

The artist was inspired by Maranasati meditation to visualise her response to, and contemplation on, the nature of death. Using meticulous and repetitive stencil work, multiple lumen prints (also known as solar photograms) were made. The artist discovered that this hands-on, slow and organic photomaking process helped her with the challenges she faced when scrolling reports of the conflict on her phone and via mainstream media.

According to the artist: ‘I hope with these artworks to create a sense of shared understanding, emotion, or motivation and to influence public opinion about the nature of cultural narratives around colonisation and power.’

Hilary Wardhaugh, Gaza Stripped, 2024, 65 x 90cm, framed inkjet print

Hilary Wardhaugh is an Australian photographer and artist whose work explores complex relationships, including humanity and the environment, as well as social and topical issues and political projects viewed through a feminist lens. Many projects involve collaborations with other photographers and artists, including the #everydayclimatecrisis Visual Petition and the Loud and Luminous Project.