Tracey Moffatt AO (b. 1960) has built an international reputation with a body of films and photographic series reflecting on issues including race, childhood trauma, gender and popular culture. Born in Brisbane, she graduated from the Queensland College of Art in 1982. After moving to Sydney, Moffatt became widely known through her celebrated first solo exhibition, Something More (1989). In 1990 her short film Night Cries – A Rural Tragedy (1989) was selected for official competition at the Cannes Film Festival, as was her first feature-length film, Bedevil, in 1993. She was invited to exhibit in the Venice Biennale in 1997, and during that year held solo exhibitions in Germany, Denmark, France and the USA. Moffatt became the first Aboriginal artist to present a solo exhibition, My Horizon, at the 57th Venice Biennale in 2017.
For this image Moffatt and photographer Greg Weight were inspired by a surrealist film by Maya Deren, where a figure in black is filmed running through city laneways and streets before turning to reveal a mirror for a face. As Weight recalled in his book Australian Artists, this photograph was taken at the Argyle Steps in the Rocks, Sydney: 'Tracey stepped into the camera frame holding the small hand mirror, her eyes reflected back into the lens.'
Gift of Patrick Corrigan AM 2004. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.
© Gregory Weight/Copyright Agency, 2024
Patrick Corrigan AM (130 portraits)
On one level The Companion talks about the most famous and frontline Australians, but on another it tells us about ourselves.
Greg Weight on working with Jiawei Shen, and starting out as a photographer.
Portraits of philanthropists in the collection honour their contributions to Australia and acknowledge their support of the National Portrait Gallery.
