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These Photos Chronicle Australian Summer in All Its Tacky Glory

A Melbourne exhibition featuring frozen daquiris, Australian flag hats, and impossibly blue swimming pools.
Photography by Anne Moffat

“A cheap buffet of holiday boredom and tackiness” is how photographer Anne Moffat describes Double Whammy, an exhibition of street photography that she’s put together with Tim Fenby. Celebrating the best and worst of the long hot Australian summer, the photographs are observational, kitsch, and a bit tongue-in-cheek with the series exploring the sense of public patriotism that seems to be inescapable during summer, especially in the lead-up to Australia Day.

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The photos for the show were taken over a period of six weeks last summer, at locations including the Melbourne Zoo, the Australian Open, the St Kilda Festival, White Night, and Melbourne’s Australia Day celebrations. “We were looking for scenes unique to these summer holiday contexts, where the standard rules of behaviour are thrown out the window and people act in a much looser fashion,” Moffat tells The Creators Project. “All of our photos are completely candid and unstaged.”

Photography by Anne Moffat

You can expect waving blue Australian flags, boxing roos, swimming pools, carnival rides, and bored teenagers kicking back on the grass. “We wanted to create a show that was brash and punchy, and a bit of fun,” Moffat says. “It’s both a celebration and a critique of summer holiday events.” As they traveled around the city taking photos of what they saw, the duo noticed a certain repetitiveness no matter where they went. “When we got the negatives back we found these connections between our photos, often unfortunate or funny coincidences and ugly moments that seemed to fit well in pairs,” Moffat explains. “Literally double whammies.”

“I love Anne’s photo of the dad and his sons on the Luna Park ride,” Fenby says, picking out his favourite photo shot by Moffat in the show. “The dad has this mixed expression of duty and excitement. I feel like he’s there guiding his sons but at the same time he’s also just another festival goer looking for a thrill.”

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Double Whammy opens this Friday June 10 at Magic Johnston, 27-29 Johnston Street Collingwood, Melbourne. Prints and photobooks will also be available for purchase on the night. Check out some more photos from the show below:

Photography by Anne Moffat

Photography by Tim Fenby

Photography by Tim Fenby

Photography by Tim Fenby

Photography by Anne Moffat

Photography by Tim Fenby

You can find out more about Anne Moffat here, and follow her on Instagram. You can find out more about Tim Fenby here and follow him on Instagram here.

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