Linda Jackson: Retreat, Regeneration, Reflection

22 January 2022 – 3 April 2022Image: Linda Jackson, Retreat, Regeneration, Reflection

Titled Linda Jackson: Retreat, Regeneration, Reflection, this exhibition documented a year of photography after the 2019/2020 Black Summer Bushfires that burnt through Jackson’s Clandulla property.

Renowned in Australian art and design industries, Jackson is best known for her long-term partnership with Jenny Kee. The pair were trailblazers in the 1970s and 1980s with their iconic use of Australiana in their fashion and designs. Their partnership was recently honoured with a survey exhibition Stepping Into Paradise at the Powerhouse Museum and a documentary detailing their long-time creative career and friendship.

Born in 1950, Jackson grew up in Beaumaris, Melbourne surrounded by the bush, stimulating a lifelong fascination with the Australian landscape. She was introduced to photography at this time through her grandfather’s darkroom and began experimenting from an early age.

Linda later trained in photography at the Prahran Technical College under cinematographer, Paul Cox. She also forged a close friendship with one of Australia’s most renowned female photographers, Carol Jerrems.

This exhibition recounted a year that was difficult for many in our community, particularly those affected by the crippling drought, subsequent bushfires and later COVID lockdowns. During this time, Jackson was able to retreat and capture almost daily photographs to detail the landscape and its gradual and inevitable recovery in the wake of the fires.

This was the first solo exhibition by Linda Jackson of her photographs.