FRANCESCA ROSA
INTERIOR DISASTER
Interior Disaster is a documentation of a decomposing household taken approximately eleven months after Cyclone Larry destroyed it. Witnessing first-hand the devastation Larry caused my family, this series represents what is left behind in the wake of a tragic event, highlighting the aesthetics of disaster, emphasizing it as an expression of place, memory and loss. Addressing concepts of the forensic aesthetic, my focus is visual aftermath of the abandoned, decayed and destroyed. This body of work reflects how my practice is influenced by the history of photography as a form of investigation, evidence and categorization. Intending to engage the viewer in an exercise of investigative analysis, each scene acts as a clue to absent meanings and prior events. The isolated space, void of human presence and the idea of surveillance are part of my process. I am drawn to the scene of the crime and all that it suggests, the presence and absence of meaning, occasionally banal yet overwhelming with its aura.
BIOGRAPHY
Francesca Rosa is a Brisbane based, Australian artist who graduated with an MA in Photomedia from the College of Fine Art, University of NSW in 2004. Rosa has exhibited nationally and her work has been collected by the Queensland Art Gallery, Daryl Hewson and privately. Forthcoming projects for 2009 include a solo exhibition at the Australian Centre for Photography, and her participation in the Queensland Art Gallery’s exhibition 150 Years: Photography in Queensland from the Collection. Rosa’s work has been selected for the 2009 Wilson HTM National Art Prize, the Churchie National Art Prize and was included in Temperature 2: New Queensland Art, at the Museum of Brisbane. In 2008, Rosa completed a solo exhibition at the Queensland Centre for Photography and was a finalist in the William and Winifred Bowness Photography Prize and CLIP Award. More of Francesca Rosa’s work can be seen at www.francescarosa.com.au