The Camera Club is based on six degrees of separation and every quarter a curator is engaged to create a group show. They select a theme and a photographer to exhibit. This second photographer supplies their works and then selects another photographer, and so the process continues until there is a total of 10 exhibiting photographers.

‘We all have Teenage Fantasies’ was the theme chosen by curator Justin Barnwell for the first show at The Camera Club but it could of been named ‘Ocean and Babes’ as almost all of the displayed works featured at least one of these two elements.

I’m a bit lost as to whether this consistent representation of Teenage Fantasies was because the pieces were chosen to suit the very attractive and very ‘Bondi’ crowd in attendance. This shouldn’t have been a consideration as only one item had a price sticker next to it (perhaps pricing sheets were hard to locate) or they simply wanted their good works out in the public eye?

So, I’ve pulled apart the concept, not out of bitterness but out of critically examining the show holistically and also because it was hard to get drunk and let things slide when drinks tickets were as rare as Bondi-ite west of Broadway…

The photos were all really good, although quite masculine in their approach despite the roster of photographers featuring two females. To outline what was actually shown; each contributing photographer had about six works on various wall spaces around the bar and every shot looked like it was a real shot that was created out of genuine talent not genuine hype as is found in most issues of Vice magazine. The highlights were Toby Burrows two largest works that featured a naked girl in a ballet styled pose falling off rocks into the ocean just as waves slapped the cliff behind her (pictured above) and Myles Barrells’ who really nailed the theme with his collection of images that featured a late night sand dune party with teens scattered around the central bonfire; Barrell described the show saying ‘Teenage fantasies are all about the discovery and exploitation of freedoms’, and that is exactly what his images showed. Below is a selection of some other photos displayed by each photographer.

The venue must also be complimented for its efforts; it’s still not a gallery space – people sit in front of the piece you’re trying to observe and lighting is dull in spots but it’s a much better space than the stairwells and such that other licensed premises use to cash in on the hipness of displaying contemporary art. Camera Club and The Beach Road Hotel are promising further cool developments to the theme of the room which will only make this event poke its head further above other watering hole art shows.

The wrap up: A group of talents are getting their work displayed for free in front of cool people, who are hopefully being educated that the creative people behind the images on the walls are worth investing in as much as a torn pair of designer jeans.

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Featured Contributor: Andrew Green

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