dream life

16-29 September, 2022

dream life uses the visual language of real estate photography to protest the systemic power imbalance between renters and landlords. The title ironically plays on the phrases “dream home” and “the Australian dream,”, but equally references a long-gone, blissful childhood ignorance. Who did you dream of becoming?

I didn’t dream of working in marketing, I dreamed of being an artist. I certainly did not dream that I would be a renter, subject to the whims and financial decisions of someone who decided to invest in properties they would never inhabit. 

In June this year my landlord refused to renew my lease, with intent to sell but no official notice. Faced with an inevitable move I chose defiance, and painted these four statements, on the same butcher’s paper I used to wrap and pack my possessions. 3 days before the move, I taped them to the exterior of my Geelong West home to be photographed over one afternoon.

This exhibition aims to replace the solitary despair that comes with insecure housing, with a shared solidarity against those who commodify housing in this country. I won’t back down, I am having the last word. I am doing my best to make my life meaningful and as close to a dream as possible.