Rebecca Dagnall
1972 - Portrait #2 (Black Cockatoo) 2022- archival pigment print on Canson Photographique paper
Rebecca Dagnall’s photographic series 'Portraits of the Dead' is a contemplative look at the notion of Solastalgia.
Coined by Australian philosopher Glenn Albrecht, Solastalgia refers to, ‘the lived experience of negative environmental change’ (2020), it is akin to ‘the homesickness you have when you are still at home’ (2003).
The audience is presented with pairs of portraits and landscapes. Each pairing explores the complicated relationship between environment/home and loss/disruption.
At first glance the portraits appear as majestic native wildlife — on closer reading of the work one is confronted with the realisation that the animal is in fact deceased. The work pays homage to lives and habitats lost or irreparably damaged through the carelessness of humans.
The unimaginable horror of what is presented is both a reality — in that it is evident that the environment is in crisis – and a memorial as the decaying carcasses will soon only be available in mimetic form.
Dagnall's work has been exhibited widely in Australia and more recently in a number of selected photo festivals and awards. Exhibitions include solos shows at the Australian Centre for Photography, Monash Gallery of Art, Queensland Centre for Photography and she was a finalist in the 2019 John Stringer prize.