A New Scene, A New Era: Photographing Queer Communities

Hear from Mazz Image, C.Moore Hardy and Jamie James for a conversation with Angela Bailey on their unique contributions to the social photography that has brought Sydney’s LGBTQI+ nightlife to the surface.

From the Sydney Lesbian & Gay Mardi Gras parades and their aftermath to Ms Wicked Competitions and sex radical/fetish parties, the panellists will each reflect on documenting Sydney’s distinct histories and subcultures during a defining period of social and sexual freedom in Australia. Together they will discuss the importance of creating a record of queer communities from a range of different perspectives.

Mazz Image is a photographer, artist and human rights advocate. She was a photojournalist for over 15-years in Sydney, documenting the rich diversity of queer communities, culminating in her book, You & Mardi Gras (2003). Now living in the UK, and helping to organise Oxford Pride since 2007, she continues to record both protest and celebration at international parades and festivals, including WorldPride in Rome, London, Madrid and New York.

C. Moore Hardy is an Australian photographer and community worker, known for her extensive photographic documentation of the Sydney queer community since the late 1970s. Hardy's work has encompassed both freelance and commercial photography, featuring candid portraiture of community events, most notably the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, and minority groups within the LGBTQIA+ community. Hardy completed studies at the National Art School, Sydney College of the Arts, and the College of Fine Arts (now UNSW Art & Design), as well as Arts Management at UTS. Her work is held in the City of Sydney Archives and Australian Queer Archives, Melbourne, and is available for research and publication.

Jamie James is a freelance photographer whose work is informed by the ways people connect, hold memory and culture, and find identity and place. Jamie’s social documentary archive spans more than three decades, documenting a collaborative exchange with Sydney’s queer, sex radical/fetish, gender diverse and performance communities since 1993.

Moderator: Angela Bailey is the President of the Australian Queer Archives, Melbourne. She is a curator and photographic artist whose practice focuses on promoting community and cultural perspectives. Her experiences as a young activist participating in the fight for gay law reform in the late 1980s, and her work as Director of the Visual Arts for Midsumma Festival in the late 1990s continue to inform her work. She is interested in interpreting diversehistories through exhibitions, installations, discourse, and public engagement programs.

—

Presented in conjunction with the landmark exhibition ‘THE PARTY’ at UNSW Galleries until 23 April 2023.

 

 

Images: A New Scene, A New Era: Photographing Queer Communities for 'Mixed Company' at UNSW Galleries, 2023.

Tile and Banner Image: C.Moore Hardy, Jackie Hyde at Stranded 1979. Courtesy of the artist and City of Sydney Archives.