Ceremony

I’ve thought about the idea for Untitled (Bungalow) for a while. A number of years ago I noticed old mission portraits of mob up against rendered white walls. These appeared to be studio photographs, but if you look closely you see in the reflection of the eyes their Country. You could see what they’re looking at. I found that really haunting — in the reflection of the eyes, there is something more. I was thinking about reflection in eyes and Country and connection, and that connection being lost at the time of those photos. The place that started for my grandmother, and for a lot of ‘half-caste’ Aboriginal children in Central Australia, was The Bungalow, the old Telegraph Station.

— Dylan River, 2022