Magic of the camera obscura revealed in contemporary photography exhibition at Port Pirie Regional Gallery

Robyn Stacey, Australia, born 1952, Tear drop garden, Carrick Hill, 2016, Adelaide, type C photograph, 110.0 x 146.7 cm (image and sheet); Courtesy the artist and Darren Knight Gallery, SydneyFrom 23rd March Robyn Stacey: Ray of Light will be on display at Port Pirie Regional Gallery. For this exhibition, eight large-scale camera obscura photographs by contemporary Australian artist Robyn Stacey will be on display for the first time in Port Pirie.

First shown as part of the 2016 Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art: Magic Object, Stacey’s camera obscura photographs depict an optical device of wonder, whereby the external world is trapped and inverted within the room. Included in the exhibition are camera obscura photographs of iconic and well-known sites around Adelaide, including the Brookman Building at the University of South Australia, Carrick Hill, The Cedars at Hahndorf, the Institute Building, The Lighthouse Wharf Hotel in Port Adelaide, Parliament House and the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI).

In the artist’s words these bewildering photographs become ‘a mash up of inside and outside’. ‘The magic of the camera obscura is that it makes us question what we take for granted- the everyday experience is presented upside down and in reverse, mimicking the way an image forms on the retina. In some photographs cars drive over the ceiling and the sky and clouds cover the floor… it’s like being in a movie where you are in the world but removed from it at the same time,’ says Stacey.

As part of the exhibition a live camera obscura will be installed at 58 Ellen Street, Port Pirie for the duration of the exhibition. Visitors will be provided with a rare opportunity to immerse themselves in the wonder of the camera obscura.

Robyn Stacey has presented work in major solo and group exhibitions including the 2016 Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art: Magic Object at the Art Gallery of South Australia, and Robyn Stacey: Cloud Land at the Museum of Brisbane, in 2015. Stacey’s works are held in public collections, including the National Gallery of Australia, National Portrait Gallery, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Art Gallery of Western Australia, National Gallery of Victoria, Art Gallery of South Australia, Queensland Art Gallery, the New South Wales Historic Houses Trust, the City of Sydney, Anne & Gordon Samstag Museum of Art, Adelaide and Artbank.

Robyn Stacey, Country Arts SA, AGSA and RGASA are prioritising the health and safety of our communities, patrons, staff and colleagues across the state during the COVID-19 outbreak. As a precautionary measure, we are unable to proceed with the live camera obscura alongside Robyn Stacey: Ray of Light in Port Pirie.

Port Pirie Regional Art Gallery remains open to the public with the exhibition offering Robyn Stacey: Ray of Light.

We look forward to the public visiting this magical exhibition

For further information visit  https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/robyn-stacey-ray-light/

The regional South Australian tour of Robyn Stacey: Ray of Light is presented in partnership with Country Arts SA, the Art Gallery of South Australia and the Regional Galleries Association of South Australia.

Special thanks to local Port Pirie Business Tell Technology for supporting the original concept of Live Camera Obscura.