Language of Light and Dark

Melissa Miles

"Light features prominently in the work of Australia's artists, writers, and photographers. Myths of a distinctly Australian light have shaped national identity and belonging, and the notion that photography is a language of light has particular significance for the country's photographic works. The Language of Light and Dark recounts this history of light as a medium and a metaphor from 1901 to the present. In this lucid, beautifully illustrated study, Melissa Miles reveals how myths of light and place have been reinvented, renewed, and challenged. She explores how approaches to darkness and light have been affected by debates about colonization, the landscape, urban development, and contemporary patterns of global and environmental change. An extensive selection of pictures from photographers including Norman Deck, Harold Cazneaux, Max Dupain, Olive Cotton, Mark Strizic, John Cato,...