REVIEW | HAYLEY THEYERS AND MURRAY CAMMICKin Fur, Queen Street, 1976 (2019) is a
perfect representation of this state of
mind. The subject’s gaze vanishes into
the distance, stilled in the moment. It’s a
good chance to take a visual breath before
venturing towards the liveliness of the
other photographs. The subjects were
known for their attention-grabbing antics,
after all. Cammick says, “Their walk up
Queen Street would cause a stir — high
fashion, high platform heels, and high as
a kite.”
This empathy is also prominent in the
apparent camaraderie between the
photographer’s subjects. It’s a lovely
thing to see friends enjoying each
other’s company, and these instances
of togetherness are something to be
celebrated. Hands are interlinked;
figures curve into each other; a hand
rests on a shoulder. The group in
Keri and Violet and Four Friends,
1976 (2019) encapsulates this, with
a comfortable closeness among all.
Keri and Two Friends, Platform Shoes,
Fort Lane, 1975 depicts the trio
hamming it up for the camera — they’re
having a hoot. It makes the viewer
feel as if they’re on the scene as well,
immersed in the high jinks.
The element that most fixes these
photographs into their time period is the
impressive fashion. In the aforementioned
image, the platform shoes are of
mesmerizing height. There are flounces
and ruffles, sequins and boas — and
bell bottoms; that goes without saying;
there’s the chic decadence of a performer
in Les Girls at Mojo’s Night Club, Roxy
Music Press Conference, 1975 (2019).
Mojo’s was a club on the corner of Queen
and Wakefield Streets with drag-queen
acts and sly grog. Though the club has
been called seedy, the photographer
doesn’t show that. Instead, there is
an elegant draped costume and the
controlled gaze of notable showgirl
Niccole Duval. In another photograph,
Duval is double-exposed, arms open
wide, fabric billowing out behind. It’s abrilliant look that immortalizes the vitality
of stage performance.
The paired shows, as part of the 2019
edition of the Auckland Festival of
Photography, were a dynamic offering
of both past and present, and of the
cerebral and the embodied. The
black and white grit of Cammick’s
photographs is an authentic street-style
outing. This stands in juxtaposition to
Theyers’ limited palette, infused with
golds and blacks and flesh tones. The
shows are a good reminder of how
diverse photographic practice can be,
and of how personal and collective
mythologies can be engaged.Nina Seja is an Auckland-based writer.
Her review was initially commissioned
by PhotoForum, a society encouraging
the promotion and discussion
of New Zealand photography:
photoforum.org.MURRAY CAMMICK, KERI, MIRROR, ENTRANCE WAY BESIDE CENTURY THEATRE, 1976