FoWo Fam
There is a little bar in Collingwood called Forgotten Worlds. Well, there WAS.
My friends Graeme and May opened the place in an old pawn shop three years ago after designing and building it from scratch and filling it with arcade machines. My partner Jason and I helped to build the exterior of the log cabin toilets in the courtyard right before I disappeared into central Queensland for 2 months.
It didn't take long for Forgotten Worlds to amass a loyal group of regulars and create a buzzing social hub for gamers, music nerds, artists and bar flies, who affectionately nicknamed the place "FoWo." After deciding that they'd done what they set out to do, May and Graeme sold the business in December. It is a major understatement to say that Forgotten Worlds has been a big part of my life for the past three years, and it was an honour to be able to occupy the walls for their very last art exhibition with a portrait series I'd been working on, entitled "FoWo Fam."
Forgotten Worlds has also been a big part of the lives of each and every person I included in this series. Apart from Graeme and May, these people were strangers to me three years ago, and now I consider all of them to be my friends.
To make this portrait series, I insisted on spending time with and photographing my subjects somewhere other than Forgotten Worlds. I knew these people from Forgotten Worlds, I saw these people almost solely at Forgotten Worlds, and I wanted to get to know all of them outside of Forgotten Worlds. Where else do they spend their time? What else do they do in their lives?
This has all been such an experience. I found myself in places I didn’t expect, with people I knew on such a base level, learning things and growing friendships. I’m grateful to everyone who allowed me to photograph them and invade their lives, but most of all I’m grateful to Graeme and May for being the glue that holds all of us together. This portrait series really is a tribute to you two.
Click the images to enlarge.
