Sticky, tricky entities are all around, inviting “human” surrender so we may dance among new assemblages of Everything Aliveness. This is the premise for The Unknowns by Gabrielle Bates, a new photomedia project visualising the shy monsters, stoic guardians and magical spirits which share their spaces and places with us. Gabrielle works with volunteer participants, handmade dress ups and performative techniques to coax the entities into the open, one photo shoot at a time. Little or no planning goes into the shoots which Gabrielle conducts using specific negotiations and ritual processes. The participants are often unknown to her, and each costume is assembled from whatever items happen to be available. Digital manipulation is an additional transformative tool used to emphasise emotional and relational dynamics, and the images are finally revealed as professional prints or paste-ups close to their site of origin.
Performances and photoshoots took place on Gadigal, Wangal, Wiradjuri and Cammeraigal lands.