For centuries, artists have ‘imagined’ historical or religious figures whose existence or human value needed acknowledgement. Waters engages with the concept of an ‘anonymous portrait’ to respectfully portray her compassion for asylum seekers. The issues associated with refugees coming to Australia by boat affect Waters deeply – the boat disasters with tragic loss of life, the anonymity of those who drown, mandatory detention, and her belief that more humane government policies could avoid much suffering.
The theme of loss permeates the exhibition. Waters appropriates words by poet Yevgeny Yevtushenko and in a suite of prints attaches them to gently obscured faces. She conjures other visages then significantly erases them to indicate absence.
Cambridge Studio Gallery
17 July to 3 August, 2013
Melbourne
Missing (detail), 2013, solvent transfer print with crayon and white pastel
Courtesy the artist
