Blackbird
Hayley Miro
The Long Gallery
8th of June - 9th of July 2023
The exhibition can be viewed during Montsalvat opening hours:
Thursday - Sunday 10:00am - 4:00pm
EXHIBITION OPENING:
Thursday THE 8th OF june - 6PM - 8:30pm
accompanied with a special performance by The Margie Lou Dyer Quintet
ALL WELCOME, FREE EVENT. RSVP REQUIRED
Blackbird is a body of pictures made in light of a short poem written by the artist at the start of this year.
Blackbird
The long shadow of night broken only: finally:
by the diligent song of a brave: alert blackbird,
singing the darkness to rest;
comforting those without a nest;
breaking the heart of darkness with a melody so beautiful one cannot but be moved.
- Hayley Miro 2023
The work is a collection of photographs, drawings and text inspired in part by the mythical story of Echo, the less familiar character in the infamous story of Narcissus. As well as this, in the search for images to capture this feeling and mythology, the artist has sought to imbue the strange notion: are these seemingly abandoned and neglected places ghosts or premonitions?
Blackbird is a deeply personal exhibition originating from themes of love and ghosts, Echo; ‘sound repeated by reflection’ and her role in the ultimate punishment of Narcissus through his own reflection.
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Born in Melbourne in 1987, Hayley Miro (Browne) first picked up a camera in 2005 while attending Swinburne Senior Secondary College. After spending a year in Stockholm, Sweden, she developed her skillset with the black and white darkroom printing technique whilst overcoming serious illness.
On her return to Melbourne, Hayley switched from black and white to colour under the suggestion of her now long-time mentor, Bill Henson.
Hayley is technically self-taught, learning by doing and under the guidance of some prominent Australian mentors (both in film and photography). Shooting predominantly with 35mm film, Miro's methods are old-fashioned analogue. This process is almost a lost art form, and the prints are all the more special and unique for it. Hayley maintains a private colour darkroom where the pictures are each made by hand, a truly unique print every time.
It is Hayley's interest in photographs as physical objects that she finds compelling enough to avoid the digital world for as long as possible.
Hayley has had numerous solo shows and participated in many group exhibitions.
She was also invited to exhibit in Long Beach, CA and commissioned to make pieces for public spaces. Between shows, Hayley shoots many band shots for album booklets, promotional collateral, and portraits and editorials for various publications.
Hayley was a finalist in the 2022 Maggie Diaz prize and contributed to the AKC fundraiser by donating an original work for auction. Hayley has been invited to speak at various Victorian senior schools about her practice and the discipline of photography and has opened a number of exhibitions and competitions.
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hayley miro browne
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4560711/
Margie Lou Dyer Quintet: Margie’s gravelly, astonishingly expressive voice is reminiscent of the best women of early jazz, like Bessie Smith or Billie Holiday. Her blues-tinged, heavy grooving, New Orleans-style piano playing is unique in Melbourne Daughter of legendary jazzman Warwick “Wocka” Dyer and musical soulmate and partner of the late Allan Browne, Margie is Melbourne jazz royalty.
