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From adolescence to adulthood: a photographic journey
A photographic documentary that followed the lives of 12 Melbourne girls over six
years has culminated in a thought-provoking exhibition by artist and RMIT
University graduate, Carla Gottgens.
Girl??? I’m a Woman Now! – at Pigment Gallery in Melbourne’s CBD to 19
December – shows a series of evocative snapshots that cover the girls’ transition
from teenagers to young adults.
Ms Gottgens, of East Brunswick, undertook the project as part of her Master of Arts
(Photography) at RMIT, using the girls’ own words combined with still photographs
to tell their stories.
“The transition from adolescence to adulthood is an intense time of great change
for young women, as they weigh the pressures of family and society expectations
while struggling to understand who they are and their place in the world,” she said.
“My original idea was to look at the different influences on how they matured and
what was important to them – friends, family, boyfriends, studies, work. I wanted to
document this time in a young woman’s life and capture the experience of going
through that change from being a teenager to an adult.”
Ms Gottgens, who began the project in 2002, roamed across Melbourne to find
subjects for the photo documentary from a wide range of backgrounds.
“A lot of the girls did surprise me, not because I thought they would go down a
particular path but because of what life threw at them,” she said.
“One had a near-death experience, when she almost died in a horse carriage
accident, another girl was diagnosed with bi-polar and depression, and another
suffered a miscarriage. You just can’t predict where their lives will go.”
The Master of Arts (Photography) enabled Ms Gottgens to extend her artistic and
commercial photography work through a long-term documentary project.
“I have many more projects in my head that I’d like to do, and the Masters has
given me both the experience and the credibility to help me pursue these ideas.”
What: Girl??? I’m a Woman Now!
Where: Pigment Gallery, Level 2, Nicholas Building
37 Swanston Street, Melbourne (cnr Flinders Lane and Swanston Street)
When: 9-19 December, Wednesday to Friday, 12pm-6pm, Saturday, 12pm-4pm
Opening night: Friday, 11 December, 6pm-8pm
For interviews: Carla Gottgens, 0412 479 149.
For general media enquiries: RMIT University Communications, Gosia
Kaszubska, (03) 9925 3176 or 0417 510 735.
9 December, 2009
NEWS 
