Embedded Umbrella Studio contemporary arts 15 April - 22 May 2016
This exhibition would like to acknowledge the support of: Townsville Bulletin Townsville City Council The Good Guys 31st/42nd Battalion, Royal Queensland Regiment 3rd Brigade, Royal Australian Regiment Military & Historic Vehicle Club Townsville Inc. Townsville Veteran, Vintage & Historic Motor Club Inc. The North Queensland Historical Re-enactment Society Inc. Nik Phillips
Townsville City Council is proud to support the Embedded exhibition under our Community Grants Program.
For more than 100 years, servicemen and women of this great nation from all of our armed services have stood side by side with not only comrades, but with mates. They have endured the unexpected, seen the scars of war, have heard the sounds of battle and many will never forget. We will never forget. From the Boer War to the shores of Gallipoli and the fields of France, to the Korean war, Borneo confrontation and the Vietnam war, through to the wars of the modern era in the Gulf, Iraq and to the mountains of Afghanistan, the media has been there too. Our presence has meant the world has also been able to share the highs and lows of conflict with our armed forces. These days, conflict and war is very high tech and will continue to be into the future. The use of social media and the constant updating of information to the general public is paramount in a world of ‘we need information and we need it NOW’. Getting that information out takes skill. It also requires photojournalists to balance good judgement against the need to disseminate accurate information. It is vital that the Australian Defence Force and the media work closely, so that the information being delivered to the wider community is not only accurate, but timely, and done in a way that it does not interfere or hinder operations. The media plays a pivotal role in modern day warfare and so it goes without saying that we must have a cordial relationship with all of our armed forces. Embedded aims to show a snapshot of this relationship. Scott Radford-Chisholm Chief Photographer
Scott Radford-Chisholm I was fortunate to operate with soldiers from 3rd Brigade only weeks after militia and Indonesian National Armed forces soldiers rampaged through villages of East Timor in late 1999. They levelled people’s homes, with all but ash left. People were left with basically just the clothes on their backs as they scurried to safer ground. The Interfet forces moved in to try to bring some peace to the troubled land and to help the East Timorese get back on their feet again. It was pleasing to see how all defence forces worked as a team and under some very tense pressure to stabilize and help the nation rebuild. It was getting the main infrastructure back in place, such as drinking water, power and building roads and bridges that was of utmost importance, along with securing the safety of the people. We travelled all around East Timor, from coastal regions to the mountains, meeting with all levels of Timorese. We spent most of the days visiting the army units and seeing how and what they were doing to help. After coming back home and producing a small book on our trip, I was sent back over to shoot for the News Ltd group and spent nearly two months there. A few years later, in 2003, journalist John Andersen and myself were Solomon Islands bound with the Australian Defence Force for operation RAMSI (Regional Assistance Mission Solomon Islands). With the nation in political turmoil and factions fighting one another for power, the Australian Defence Force was called upon again to assist in restoring some kind of law and order. We found the Solomon Islands people very friendly but we still had to keep our wits about us when walking around. The Australian Army presence on the ground was reassuring to all the locals that something was being done to quell the violence and upheaval that the nation was going through.
Reporter Tony Raggatt (front, middle) and photographer Scott Radford-Chisholm (front, right) with troops and other media in East Timor
Evan Morgan Since joining the Townsville Bulletin photographic team in June 1999 one of the continuing highlights has been the opportunity to work closely with the Australian Defence Force. So far this has culminated with the opportunity in October 2011 to embed, with journalist Emily Macdonald, with soldiers from 2RAR on a tour of duty in the Uruzgan province in southern Afghanistan. When the C130 J Hercules wheels touched down on the runway at Tarin Kowt I thought “here we go’’ and felt a tremor of apprehension, not knowing if we would be facing a constant barrage of rocket attacks. But as the days passed and we filed stories and sent pictures there was nothing. It was turning into the perfect embed. The threat from the Taliban or random violence seemed to recede. The five days spent at Forward Base Mirwais in the Chora Valley were perfect. We met the soldiers from Delta Company 2RAR and did our job, recording what they did. Then came October 28. It started as yet another perfect day but then came reports of mass casualties coming in and late in the afternoon, as flags were lowered to half-mast, word spread of three fatalities. When that Afghan National Army soldier pulled the trigger on his machine gun, mowing down ten Aussie Diggers, this embed was exposed to the harsh reality. There is never a perfect day here. This is a war zone. It was one of the hardest jobs I have ever done when I had to photograph the ramp ceremony and three caskets being loaded on to a C130 Hercules, taking three brave and dedicated soldiers home.
Photographer Evan Morgan in Afghanistan
Fiona Harding In September/October 2012 I joined journalist Emily Macdonald and embedded with the 3rd Battalion Royal Australian Regiment Task Group in Afghanistan. While abroad, we visited members of Force Support Unit Six based at Al Minhad Air base in the United Arab Emirates AMAB, and the bases in Afghanistan at Tarin Kowt, Kandahar and Kabul along with Forward Operating bases Patrol Base Wali, Camp Black Horse, Hadrian and Tycz in the surrounding areas. This was a journey that changed my view and preconceived notions I had on the Australian army completely. I now have a deeper, renewed respect for the men and women who served (and continue to) in our armed forces. My images captured the daily living conditions, working environment, stresses and activities the soldiers undertook while deployed, with the aim to bring these stories back to their families, friends and the broader Townsville community. The idea was to provide a link with not only soldiers’ families, but the broader community, Australia wide, with the photographs. My images reflect the lighter side of conflict as the Australian troops were handing over operations to the Afghanistan army, pulling out and coming home. I have been a press photographer for nearly two decades, and my career has taken me to all corners of the globe in the pursuit of great images. My time in Afghanistan with the men and women who serve in the defence force will be something I shall always value.
Photographer Fiona Harding in Afghanistan
Troy Rodgers Early 2009 I was missing the action that came with being an Army photographer in my former life before working for the Townsville Bulletin. I was able to use my contacts to help get Defence reporter Jessica Johnston and myself on assignment in Afghanistan. I had already been to Afghanistan in 2002 where I documented the SAS on operations so I knew the country and I certainly knew the danger that came with a photographer being in a war. Jess and I covered Townsville troops deployed to Afghanistan conducting infrastructure reconstruction, mentoring, and combat operations against the Taliban. We spent most of our time with Townsville’s 1st Battalion Royal Australian Regiment (1RAR) at Tarin Kowt located in the Uruzgan Province. Personally, I found now being a ‘scumbag civvi’ photographer a liberating experience because I did not have to carry any physically restrictive equipment that I was required to carry before and it freed me up to capture many images of the soldiers hard at work protecting themselves and ‘scumbag civvies’ in their care! The soldiers themselves quickly relaxed their opinions towards us. These men could not do enough for us to achieve our mission for the Townsville Bulletin. We need to not only remember the fallen while in the line of duty but the Diggers who come home and tragically pass away from suicide and the after-effects of other unknown sources they were exposed to. Lest We Forget.
Photographer Troy Rodgers and reporter Jessica Johnston with troops in Afghanistan
30 Years and Still Counting!
umbrella studio contemporary arts
Umbrella Studio contemporary arts | 482 Flinders Street, Townsville | (07) 4772 7109 | www.umbrella.org.au Open Mon-Fri 9am-5pm & Sun 9am-1pm Umbrella Studio acknowledges the financial support of: The Queensland Government, through Arts Queensland, the Commonwealth Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body, and the Visual Arts and Craft Strategy, an initiative of the Australian, State and Territory Governments.