Welcome
True stories from the past. Shared for the future
Welcome to my webpage… where I present my past and current research projects using images and text to tell ‘unknown’ stories. Through memoirs, local history, research and personal experiences, the lives and events that connect generations are remembered.
My most recent project is @1966honeymoon which recreate my aunt and uncle’s honeymoon around the world in 1966. Their journey around the world was captured using colour slides, Super 8 film, and a handwritten diary. Those memories sat quietly in boxes for almost 60 years. In have shared their journey on Instagram as if it's happening today—one photo, one reel, one diary entry at a time. You can see the story on @1966honeymoon as Jean and Braid Smith sail from Australia to England aboard the Oronsay, tour Europe and the UK, cross America, and then fly home via Fiji and New Zealand.
My book, Honey: A story from Queensland’s musical past is a non-fiction narrative contextualised within a coming-of-age memoir. Set in the early 1900s, it tells the story of Ethel May Matthews, a beautiful, talented and remarkable young Australian pianist from Ravenswood, North Queensland. Frank Muller, my cousin, joined me on this quest to research her enigmatic past.
In the George’s War I investigated the people and places in 60 ‘found photos’ from World War Two in Papua New Guinea. They tell an intriguing story about daily life during the war and the relationship between servicemen and the people of Papua New Guinea. The journey has many twists and turns and has culminated in exhibitions at the RAAF Airforce Base Heritage Centre at Amberley and the Massim Museum and Cultural Centre in Alotau (Milne Bay). Please contact me if you have any information or recognise any of the people in these images
My earlier projects Wounded not conquered and Freedom allow readers insight into quality of life and the experience of living with a mental illness. Over a number of years, I spent time with some wonderful people and had the privilege to share their stories.
From a more photo-journalistic perspective in Recapitulation I have honoured the life of Mrs Honey Bessey, an Australian pianist and teacher from a century ago, whose story had not previously been told. This project was developed into the book, Honey.
Projects