Cardinia Shire Council is seeking submissions from the local community for an upcoming photographic exhibition, Emerging from Fire.
The exhibition will be on display at Cardinia Cultural Centre and is reflective of the 2019 Bunyip Complex Fires, which directly affected the communities of Tynong North, Garfield North, Bunyip North, and Tonimbuk.
The exhibition is being developed in partnership with the Community Recovery Committee.
This follows feedback from affected residents who felt having an opportunity to capture and reflect on their experiences was an important part of their recovery.
Submissions are open to both amateur and professional photographers, as well as residents, emergency responders and any other individual who captured the fire event or its response, relief, or recovery efforts.
Photographs will be accompanied by a short bio explaining the significance of the image.
Cardinia Shire mayor Jeff Springfield said the exhibition was a chance to visually encapsulate the significance of the event, as well as the strength and courage of those affected.
“Having come through the adversity of the 2019 fires, this exhibition is an opportunity to reflect on the community’s resilience, as we look ahead to the future in these special parts of Cardinia Shire,” he said.
“Submissions can be a photograph of the event itself or of the emergence and recovery in the days, months and years following.
“The image may be of an individual who inspired you during this time, or a more straightforward depiction of the devastation so many of our residents faced.
“Everyone affected has a different story from this time, and this exhibition offers the opportunity to tell it.”
A selection of photos will be curated, printed, and framed prior to the exhibition’s opening night on Friday 5 August.
To submit a photograph for the exhibition, visit creating.cardinia.vic.gov.au
Submissions close a 11.59pm on Sunday 3 July.
Hard copy photographs can be submitted in person at the Box Office at Cardinia Cultural Centre.
For more information about recovery services in Cardinia Shire, including helplines and available mental health services, visit Council’s website at cardinia.vic.gov.au/recovery or call the Bushfire Recovery team on 1300 787 624.
