The Pool Grant 2017 Exhibition: Resist Laughter

We are excited to announce The Pool Grant 2017 Exhibition, Resist Laughter, by Alana Holmberg, opening this May at Special Group Studios as a featured exhibition of Head On Photo Festival. OPENING NIGHT: 6pm 11 May 2017 *RSVP ONLY* click 'going' and rsvp on our website The Pool Grant 2017 recipient will be announced on Opening Night Exhibition Dates: 5 - 17 May 2017 Artist Talk: 1pm, Saturday 13 May 2017 Alana Holmberg was awarded The Pool Grant 2016 for her proposal Resist Laughter, and has spent the past year creating her series under the mentorship and support of The POOL COLLECTIVE and The Pool Grant. "A tweet lured me to Turkey initially – an image of young women laughing in the street and the Turkish words #direnkahkaha, meaning #resistlaughter. It was one of thousands of tweets posted by Turkish women to protest comments by the country’s then Deputy Prime Minister who said women should not laugh in public. And it found me, 16,000 kms away." "I went to Turkey to learn more about these women and connect with them. Tentatively beginning to call myself a feminist at the time, I wanted to celebrate their efforts and add my voice to theirs in the face of media censorship and marginalisation." Through necessity of timing, Resist Laughter considers the influence of Government actions and rhetoric on everyday experiences of women in Turkey – on the street, in families, at home, in personal relationships – as told to Alana from those fighting for equality.