BRUCE POSTLE IMAGE MAKER Bruce Postle is one of Australia’s most celebrated photojournalists. He has assiduously documented Australian life and current affairs in over half a century of photojournalism. Postle began his career in 1957 working with the Courier-Mail in his hometown of Brisbane. He moved to Melbourne in 1969 and began to work for The Age, where over a 32 year period he captured some of the most iconic images of our time. This exhibition presents a selection photographs selected by the artist and MGA which cover Postle’s career. In its own way, each picture reveals Postle’s ability as a story teller. Before the days of citizen journalism and social media, we relied on people like Postle to put a picture to the events of the day. Across five decades, his photographs helped Victorians see the events of the world as they unfolded. In some of the pictures, we can see Postle working hard to find a story in a mundane setting; in others the monumental nature of the subject clearly spoke for itself. Each of the pictures is accompanied by an extended caption written by the photographer. As well as being a great picture maker, Postle is able to use words to great storytelling effect. The photographs included here include some of Postle’s bestknown images, such as his portrait of strapper Tommy Woodcock and the racehorse Reckless, and his shot of Bert Newton receiving a kiss from Mohammed Ali during the 1979 Logie Awards. The exhibition also includes pictures of events – such as 1983’s Ash Wednesday bushfires and Vietnam Moratorium marches – that have become historically significant moments in our history. But many of the most moving pictures are those engaging with the everyday or with little known subjects, which invariably reveal Postle’s humour, compassion and empathy.
Available in the MGA bookshop PUBLICATION BRUCE POSTLE: THE IMAGE MAKER ELM GROVE PRESS PTY LTD PO BOX 3, Armadale North, Victoria, 3143 elm@ozonline.com.au ISBN:9780646551838 (HBK)
IMAGE FRONT COVER Bert Newton and Muhammad Ali during the presentation of Logie Awards, Southern Cross Hotel, Melbourne, 17 March 1979 1979 gelatin silver print, printed 2003 29.0 x 39.5 cm Monash Gallery of Art, City of Monash Collection acquired 2003 MGA 2003.23
MONASH GALLERY OF ART 860 Ferntree Gully Rd Wheelers Hill Victoria 3150 T: +61 3 8544 0500 E: mga@monash.vic.gov.au W: www.mga.org.au Tues to Fri: 10am–5pm, Sat & Sun 12–5pm closed: Mondays and public holidays MGA: THE HOME OF AUSTRALIAN PHOTOGRAPHY
BRUCE POSTLE IMAGE MAKER 4 MAY–30 JUNE 2013