Something I’ve been pondering a bit, in regards to the art I make, is what’s next.

For 2026, there’s plenty on: a new book of my work, a few exhibitions. Each of these have specific goals and ways I want to showcase my growth as an artist.

But what I’ve started to consider is what I want to do next. With the sort of work I make, and my profile, I often need a year or more for opportunities to materialise. Say I wanted to exhibit overseas - that would take 12+ months to organise, so I have to be intentional. Like any career, a career in art also involves planning, considering how I want to grow, and thinking a bit strategically.

When I worked in Universities, for example, if I wanted to get a promotion, it wasn’t enough to be competent - I also needed to ensure that I could demonstrate that with increased responsibility came increased success. So pursuing things like responsibility over a budget, a project, or a partnership meant a lot in terms of opening up more opportunities.

At the same time, the way I’ve been working - where I travel quite far to make photographs - just isn’t feasible any longer. With a baby and all that, going to the bush for a week or two, potentially being out of phone reception, while my partner has her own job, etc, just isn’t the sort of father, partner or person I feel I want to be right now.

I’m not 100% sure yet, but I’ve had a few thoughts circulating a little.

In 2026, my goals are to really improve the way I exhibit and document two exhibitions very, very thoroughly. I want to continue to make large strides with exhibiting and show galleries, curators and festivals what I’m capable of. So the exhibitions in 2026, as much as anything, are about pushing myself.

The other thing I’d like to do in 2026 is start work on a new project about environment, colonialism and Australia.

In 2027, I would like to:
a) Have one international exhibition - either a small gallery or an appropriate arts festival

b) Make substantial progress with my project so I can show a compelling early stage to new partners - my aim is to be finished by 2029 and have a mid-career retrospective about my work on the environment to co-incide with turning 40

So what could I make a new project about?

One thing I’ve been thinking a lot about is invasive species. These have been something that’s come up a bit with both The Killing Sink and Ten Eighty - however I feel like perhaps making an almost encyclopedic approach to invasive species in Australia could be really compelling.

I’ve also been thinking about plants. In 2023, it became official that 51% of plant life in Australia is non-native. That means, in a country as large as ours, the majority of trees, crops, gardens, etc, are introduced species. I’m interested in how plants reflect people’s desire to bring home with them (as immigrants) and also how plants often are unreadable to most people - so folks could walk home from work and perhaps not realise that every single plant they pass is something that has choked and dominated native species.

At the same time, travel is a problem, so I’ve been wondering about whether I look at my suburb as a sort of observation site - finding what invasive species call this area home. Using camera traps, walks with ecologists, and things like that, to explore the urban biome and what that says about the environmental reality of Australia. The bats, cats, foxes, fish, pets, gardens, gum trees, etc, could be fascinating if done well.

I was also invited to photograph a traditional Indigenous community hunting feral cats. Feral cats are the most problematic invasive species by a lot of people’s estimation, and a remote desert community hunting them would be a really interesting thing to photograph for a week or so.

Finally, I have been collecting old maps that describe Australia as a resource. I’m curious about the connection between these gorgeous maps that describe mineral deposits, or farming potential, and juxtaposing those against the costs or fall out of rabidly pursuing those aims. I think, visually, finding maps as a way to unpack the reality of extraction, over-farming, etc, could be really fascinating. I feel there is such a strong connection between pursuit of wealth and destruction of environment, often in ways that are not appreciated (for example, rabbits have been at plague proportions in the past, so the government paid people to hunt them, as these people would trap rabbits they would re-release some so that they’d have some rabbits to hunt next time, thus ensuring a stable income). I wonder if I can really pick at the commercial underpinnings of so much environmental destruction - but instead of focusing on things like mining (which is obvious) maybe look at things like rabbits, goats, water useage.

Anyway, lots to consider and lots to do.

Let me know if you’ve got any responses to my ideas - it’s always fascinating to bounce ideas around.