Prudence Murphy (Australia):

Boys With Guns

Prudence Murphy is an Australian artist based in Sydney. She completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts with First Class Honours in 1999 and a Masters of Fine Arts (Research) in 2002, at the College of Fine Arts, University of New South Wales. She has exhibited across Australia, including numerous solo exhibitions in Melbourne and Sydney. She was shortlisted for the Art and Australia Contemporary Art Award in 2007, and was a finalist in the William and Winifred Bowness Photography Prize and the Olive Cotton Award in 2011.She currently lectures in Photomedia at the College of Fine Arts, University of New South Wales and in Photography and Situated Media at the University of Technology, Sydney.

“For some time now I have been interested in chance moments of play and fleeting moments in a child’s development. In play we shape the world, and children from an early age develop the impulse to play with weapons. These images were shot in Rhyl, North Wales, and urban and bush settings around New South Wales, Australia: I chose the locations, cast local boys and allowed them to improvise their own games. I then followed them for several hours watching their play unfold. The resulting photographs are simply an attempt to depict something of the mystery of children’s imaginings, which may perhaps resonate with and elucidate our adult experience.”

Images © Prudence Murphy.