Borrowed Views
11.03.2025 Emma Hardy
Exhibition on the 13th of March from 5pm to 8pm at Nowe Studios in Bangalow.
Exhibition on the 13th of March from 5pm to 8pm at Nowe Studios in Bangalow.
With my camera in hand and laptop behind, I flew across the world in January. The plan was to visit family friends in Noosa for a week, and then head over to Indonesia. Two months later, I am writing this piece still in the Land of Oz. There is an indescribable flow that I have found here, and I’m leaning into that momentum.
A hunger to meet new people, accompanied by my overstimulated, curiosity-driven, dyslexic brain, brought me to the McTavish surf shop one sizzling Tuesday. Intentionally, I challenged my past producer-self to have no plan, just point and shoot with ease. After one too many minutes standing, mesmerized by the art of shaping, I stumbled upon something unintentionally beautiful, outside of the average shot list.
Whether it was the fumes in the factory or my state of mind being at ease, I kept getting pulled back to the leftover resin. The natural patterns that emerge gradually- as one board gets glazed at a time. The way the colors resemble nature, I was seeing the ocean, rocks, waves all within the dried up leftovers. It struck me how each layer of resin represents a customer surfing that board somewhere in the ocean. With each unique story, these resin pieces show unintentional beauty together. Although surfing is physically an individual sport, it is fueled by the community, and within the resin you can see it.
The unseen.
The unintentional.
I had to do something with it.
Feeling this attraction with something that would end up sitting toxic in a landfill left me hopeful to repurpose it. A shaper noticed my state of awe and kindly let me go home with a piece. On my walk back, I held it up to the Byron blue sky and took one photo. Seeing the result, I cancelled my return flight and fell asleep knowing that there was something greater here to explore.
The next day I went back to the factory to ask if I could get more. The timing worked out perfectly as they were throwing it all out at the end of the week. A few shapers helped me load up three boxes and in passing someone said “yeah everyone loves the resin but no one actually does anything with it.”
I am pleased to be launching my exhibition Borrowed Views on the 13th of March, at Nowe Studios in Bangalow. It will be a mixed media exhibition featuring resin photography, paint, and poetry.
Borrowed Views is an ancient Japanese concept, otherwise known as 借景 shakkei. My father taught me it when I picked up my first film camera. It started from Japanese garden design, framing Mother Nature’s landscape within one’s own personal garden. With photography, I have always led with an intention of framing a borrowed view, and finding the unseen shot. This separates the self, allowing you to share what is naturally and unintentionally right there in front of you.
Since I was a child, I have been writing daily. Sometimes I don’t have enough words, but most times I have too many. My mentor in creative writing, Doug, challenged me to write a haiku a day. Sticking to five, seven, five syllables. With this practice, I have challenged myself to simplify the words in my head and transform them into haikus. Here are a few that will be on display at my upcoming exhibition.
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Rebirth can feel strange
In the same vessel but new
Sit back and enjoy
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—
Kingdom of boredom
Time between time remains yours
Space finds the beauty
Kingdom of boredom
Time between time remains yours
Space finds the beauty
—
—
She shares the unseen
Ready for you to notice
It’s your borrowed view
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See similar events in what’s coming?
SABASTIAN FARDELL 11.03.2025
Northern Rivers Community Photo Club’s Pilot exhibition on the 22nd of March.
MARLEY ALVAREZ 11.03.2025
A collection of works inspired by the past year—moments spent surfing, swimming, and watching sunsets with good company.
A Vibrant Celebration of Art and Community. Group art exhibition on March 29 at Stew.