While Australian photographer resides at DCR Gueststudios he prepares the exhibition That's Just a Nun with a Bag of Oranges at Valokuvakeskus Peri - Photographic Centre Peri in Turtu, Finland.
David Wills presents a new Wunderwall, That’s just a nun with a bag of oranges, comprising around 1,300 photographs in an extremely large-scale photographic installation. His aim is to unravel meaning from contemporary existence. Extracted from a digital archive in excess of 270,000 images, the focus is on the barely registered: wan Band-aids, filmy oil splotches, slumped mattresses, discarded televisions, limp plastic bags and lost underwear to name just a few sets gathered within. Scattered throughout are moments of fleeting beauty, poignant messages via graffiti and a sense that waste reigns supreme.
That’s just a nun with a bag of oranges refers to the absurdity of life and the search for meaning within it as we meander along. Through the use of multiple images and varied experiences, the Wunderwall is peppered with references, some potent, others inane and some to be taken with a grain of salt. Juxtaposition plays a role in discussing ideas and themes with the idea that the work as a whole forms a contemplative environment.
David: 'my work considers the significance of collections (photographic)and what they infer about the choices we make and the impacts we have on the planet. The images not only depict the detritus of consumerism, but also longing. Similarities and differences are highlighted, the value we place on resources and products, and the interactions we have with each other on the street, the watching, flirting and ignoring ponder contemporary western living.'
The Wunderwall is supported by Shootin’ Gallery, a photographic database comprising just on 10,000 images on my website Turnstile.net.au
