Barbara Brown’s win at the age of 64 of the AIPP 2019 Australian Emerging Photographer of the Year award underscores the diversity of contemporary career paths leading to professional photography.
Barbara, who describes herself as a ‘very mature emerging photographer”, began her photography journey while studying physics at the University of Tasmania.’
‘It wasn’t until I was reaching retirement from my career as an environmental advisor that I decided to seek out photographic workshops, seminars and mentoring to expand my knowledge,’ she said.
Barbara’s environmental and physics background have provided a greater understanding of the impact industry has on the environment.
The winning portfolio included an aerial image the judges described as ‘worms’, but the image is actually the residue areas of the Worsley Alumina plant in the south west of Western Australia.
‘The black and white images were both shot in the Banff region of Canada in the depth of winter in temperatures as low as -24C.
‘I love rust and texture of old machines and cars and am very interested in abandoned factories, particularly buildings from the Soviet era.
‘A few years ago, I spent four days photographing Chernobyl and the remains of surrounding villages,’ she said.
Her recent travels also include Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan where she explored factories abandoned at time of the fall of the Soviet Union.
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