A typewriter stands in a museum, a disused armory from the old days when wars of the intellect were waged on the pages of letters. This relic stands as a reminder of the days when women wrote, with no right to vote, contributing to political discourse and social change. Women writers in 19th century Australia illustrated the freedom and independence that the act of writing gave them; though legally denied a vote these women chose not to deny themselves a voice.
In homage to these women, I have attempted to re-envision portraits of 5 pivotal female Australian writers; Stella Miles Franklin, Ethel Florence Richardson, Ethel Turner, Barbara Baynton, and Louisa Atkinson. I have recreated two portraits of each woman, one of their silhouette illustrating the enigmatic identity of an imagined author and the other re-creating their portraits in a traditional style. These portraits give attention and due awareness to those women who dared to seek change and to express publicly a thought of their own.

Each image is taken on 4 x 5 Large format neg.