FORM

In partnership with FotoFreo, FORM presents Divergence: Photographs from Elsewhere, a monumental showcase of contemporary photography by over sixty artists based in fifteen countries, as part of the FotoFreo Open Exhibition Program. The project will transform the Midland Railway Workshops into a panorama of images that demonstrate photography’s unique ability to communicate across cultures, connect diverse people, create debate and stir emotion. A dynamic multimedia event will launch this month long photographic showcase on Wednesday 14 March.

Headlining the show will be Elsewhere, a collection of work by some of the world’s premier contemporary photographers. The exhibition will include works by UK-based Martin Parr, documenting England’s industrial West Midlands; Sohrab Hura’s images of Indian religious rituals, capturing the grace of spiritual worship in the ancient city of Benares; Bharat Sikka’s vision of the ‘new’ India, comprising a series of images that blend studio, street, landscape and portrait photography; and Ketaki Sheth’s groundbreaking portraits of twins.

FORM’s The Pilbara Project, is a long-term project to document, map, illustrate and celebrate the diverse characteristics of this unique place. Using photography, film, writing, visual art and community initiatives, the Pilbara Project seeks to shine a light on the region’s natural beauty, but also on the communities that comprise it: their stories, resourcefulness, ingenuity, history – and their future. 

As part of these activities, FORM supported leading Australian photographers Dr. Les Walkling, Tony Hewitt, Christian Fletcher, Peter Eastway, and film maker Michael Fletcher, to explore the Pilbara. The outcome was an exhibition, and publication entitled, 52 Weeks On: A Pilbara Project Exhibition. 

The project also led to another outcome, with the group of photographers that undertook The Pilbara Project journeys together forming Ninety Degrees 5, a collective that undertakes collaborative projects and creative partnerships. For Divergence: Photographs from Elsewhere, FORM invited the Ninety Degrees 5 photographers to exhibit photographs that have particular poignancy, meaning and significance to them.