Photographer Brydie Piaf has made her mark in Newcastle for images shot in and around water, notably Merewether Baths.
But she has other passions, too, as a photographer.
"This is where my heart is," Piaf tells me this week, as we talk about an image of hers, titled Eight (vi), that was selected as a finalist for the prestigious National Photographic Portrait Prize at the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra.
"I absolutely love water," she says. "But I love dark shadows, my portraitures. The subtle stories you can create from this sort of image. It's a technique and photography I'm drawn to."
In Piaf's own words, the image was the result of a personal collaboration with her daughter, Edie, during homeschooling as the result of the 2020 COVID lockdown.
"Eight is a portrait series, done in collaboration with my daughter Edie, who at the time was eight years old," she says.
"Working often as my muse (like all my kids), Eight was made with my daughter over five months or so. Initially starting during lockdown in 2020 as a way of exploring shadows within our home differently.
"Together we'd study old paintings and the different styles of master painters, then create a portrait of our own with as little structure as possible. The series slowly came together.
"Each session, we would chat, both relaxed, giving her time to sink into her space or zone - which is ultimately what I'm after - time together, capturing a fleeting moment of being eight."
Another image, from the same series was selected for the semi-finals in the Head On photography competition.
The images in the Eight series were all shot in the same location.
"There is one corner of my bedroom where there is particular light," Piaf says. "It's a small space, very restrictive. Very small parameters. I had to think creatively."
There is a flip side: Edie also took photos of her mum, using the same techniques.
Piaf says she wishes she and Edie could attend the opening of the show (July 31) in Canberra. It runs through November 7, so hopefully, they will get to her image on the walls of the National Portrait Gallery soon.
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