Adam Ferguson began photographing the Australian interior in 2013 in
the aim of dispelling sentimental and outdated narratives about the "Outback" -
a central place for Australia's identity and development
of today. His photographic investigation, carried out over a period of ten years,
depicts traditional events that fade away, small towns that
shrink, the connection of Aboriginal people to country, the impacts of
globalization and the adversity of climate change to illustrate the
complex realities of contemporary life in the "Outback". The "Outback" has not
of demarcated border, but designates the interior of Australia, vast and little
populated - 73% of Australian territory, or more than two million kilometers
square meters, are inhabited by only 5% of the country's 24 million inhabitants.
Despite its small population, it is a large and diverse segment that
defines the character of the country and has been mythologized in poetry, song,
literature and the screen. Ferguson was originally inspired by the project of
Richard Avedon's portrait, "In the American West," which challenged the
romantic notions of the West. Ferguson's project is similar in terms of
scope and ambition, but diverges stylistically. As
As the project evolved, it became clear that the portrait could not be
only tell the story of the people he met.
