Corben Mudjandi, a Traditional Owner of Mirarr Country in Kakadu National Park is an emerging analogue photographer. Corben, who is typically familiar with taking candid photos of family, friends, and landscapes out bush, presents this series as an exploration of self in unfamiliar urban settings, through his first time on Wurundjeri Country unaccompanied. 

Brunswick Street Gallery, with the support of Yarra City Council, is excited to launch our Ground Floor Gallery Project —- a dedicated exhibition space to showcase the work of emerging artists based across Australia. Focusing on inclusion and promotion of artists from marginalised communities, we will be working with local artists, local arts organisations and remote national Indigenous Art Centres.

Activating our ground level exhibition space — Ground Floor Gallery — we are excited to curate and facilitate an exciting, diverse exhibition program within a contemporary inner-city environment, connecting our Ground Floor artists with new audiences, emerging and established collectors, and extending their art networks. Equally, the artistic contributions of our exhibitors will work to create a more enriched and diverse local Yarra art scene.

“.. I wasn’t expecting how busy Melbourne was going to be, there were so many people, and I almost had a heart attack because it was so unfamiliar. I know I had to push through to become comfortable with this new environment.

It's not the experience you have, you know as a kid. You have your family – you are a whole. The first time at that one point where I was sitting there [ref image ‘Emptiness’], half of them were gone, that’s why I chose to fade myself in [to the photo]. It’s kind of that emptiness, even though they are only a couple hours away, it is the first time I’m living away from family. It’s the first time I have independence.

It was shame for me to ask someone to be in the photos I took in Melbourne, so I took all the photos of me, myself, placed in Melbourne city settings. 
Everything I am doing now is just me, I’m always used to having someone there, my mum my brother, my cousin. But now it’s me, these photos feel just me. Long story short, it just feels lonely sometimes.

These photos were taken two months ago, and they were taken by a Yashika Mat 120G. I wanted an accessible medium format camera, so did research on Youtube on what was available. I was drawn to the image quality with the grain and light that the Yashika produced. The black and white images were taken by my 35mm Minolta.

It was my first time experimenting with double exposures on my Yashika with an old roll of film. I thought they wouldn’t come out good being my first time, but I am really happy with the results. I experimented on my Minolta to play with ‘double exposure’, but instead looked at long exposures to have a similair effect.
I really like taking night shots, my most favourite part of film photography that I really enjoy, is night atmosphere. There’s something about night shots, how the camera captures light in the dark. It’s what I enjoy most. Working with film photography, I really love the challenge it gives me and it’s different than digital, it’s something nostalgic – it’s the magic that film produces."

 Corben Mudjandi, 2022. Text courtesy of Marrawuddi Arts & Culture.

Corben Mudjandi, Self-Metaphor is proudly held in our Ground Floor Gallery Project, presented by Brunswick Street Gallery and Marrawuddi Arts & Culture, supported by the City of Yarra.