Using readymade and everyday materials, Gerwyn Davies assembles characters through costume that simultaneously conceal, transform and abstract the body. These highly stylised and exaggerated transformations are regenerative as they form part of an ongoing inventory of photographic self-projections.

Gerwyn’s practice is intentionally excessive and playful. In each work a new character steps forward within a hyperreal set, asking us to reflect upon the body, costume, context and movement. As we dress and step into our daily roles, Gerwyn’s artistic practice is a great reminder of the narratives we construct for ourselves, backed with a hint of humour.
Gerwyn was born in 1985, and career highlights include a feature, “Gerwyn Davies’ Beast” in the British Journal of Photography (September 2013), being a regular finalist in photographic awards, and showing at Photo LA (USA) in 2011 and 2012. In 2018, he held a solo exhibition at Sydney’s Australian Centre for Photography and he was selected for the inaugural Biennale of Australian Art at the Art Gallery of Ballarat. Gerwyn recently undertook the Australia Council Kyoto Art Centre Exchange residency in Japan. Gerwyn’s work is held in private and public collections, including Artbank, HOTA Gallery, Museum of Brisbane and Queensland Children’s Hospital.

Read the exhibition essay by Dr. Daniel Mudie Cunningham here