1974–1990
Despite his or her own benevolence in representing those who have been denied access to the means of representation, the photographer inevitably functions as an agent of the system of power that silenced these people in the first place.1
This is the Martha Rosier's rationale for calling concerned photography 'victim' photography. What then of those who request representation? How does the medium and its subsequent placement impose on-or allow participation in- the meeting of that request?
Amidst a violent skirmish, a group of East Timorese students made a spontaneous plea for photographic evidence which would extend their situation into worlds beyond their own. The photographer who - quite inadvertently - is witness to such an attack is allowed but a moment to ponder the implications of response. New to the medium, Jenny Groves found herself in this position. Not only did she collect evidence, but also returned, self and exposures, safely to Australia. The experience provided the impetus for another first: the exhibition, East Timor 1974-1990: a Photographic Perspective of the Continuing Struggle for Independence.
The exhibition was an assemblage of photographs and political posters which were supported by, or contextualised within, a web of art and artifact. The various parts used a narrative thread of pre- to post-invasion East Timor, a study in polemics emanating from war and peace. Reading the sequence of objects- graphic and other-reveals a matrix of curatorial consciousness raising concerns ranging from a celebration of heritage through to anger at overt threats placed on a people and their culture.
With the global increase in questions of cultural decentralization, galleries of contemporary art are ready to extend previous debates on the politics of representation. The