Tamara Dean - Body and artwork — UNSW Library Online Exhibitions

“Nature is a fundamental part of my life. The conceptual framework which underpins my work explores the relationship between humans and nature.” [i]

Tamara Dean has a deep fascination for the natural world and humanity’s place within it. Working predominately with photography, her works celebrate the beauty and wonder of the environment. Dean’s images are characterised by rich colour and deep tones, creating moments of stillness and pause which invite reflection and evoke the sacredness of all that is natural.

Tamara Dean born 1976, Australia Toxin terminators (III) 2015 from the Wild researchers series 2015 inkjet print 62.7 x 82.7 cm (image/sheet) Commissioned by UNSW Media Office in 2014. Presented to UNSW Art Collection, 2020 (PH 2020/2010) © Tamara … — **Tamara Dean**
born 1976, Australia
*Toxin terminators (III)* 2015
from the *Wild researchers* series 2015
inkjet print
62.7 x 82.7 cm (image/sheet)
Commissioned by UNSW Media Office in 2014. Presented to UNSW Art Collection, 2020 (PH 2020/2010)
© Tamara Dean

In 2014 Dean was commissioned by the UNSW Media Office to create a body of work centred on UNSW scientists and researchers. The resulting series, Wild researchers 2014–15 features scientists and researchers from disciplines ranging from mathematics and Indigenous astronomy to climate change and biotechnology, as well as a landscape architect and a philosopher. Dean presents her subjects in disparate locations, from urban landscapes to remote wildernesses, emphasising the variety of research work undertaken by her subjects. One series of photographs, Toxin terminators features Associate Professor Mike Manefield, Dr Matthew Lee and Dr Robert Barnes from Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences who investigate groundwater contamination at industrial sites. One of three photographs of this team, Toxin terminators (III) was taken on the foreshores of Botany Bay at dusk with the container terminal in the distance. One of Sydney’s most industrialised locations, Dean has nevertheless chosen to focus upon the beauty of the evening sky and its reflection in the water. Through the use of artificial lighting she also emphasises the common purpose of the researchers as they walk together through this landscape. For Dean, the Wild Researchers project was a way to highlight the importance of research in protecting and understanding nature:

“I hope people looking at these images get a new sense of respect for researchers, inspiration from the relationship we have to the natural environment, and a new sense of value to the environment we live in.” [ii]

Dean completed at BA in Design at the University of Western Sydney in 1998 and subsequently worked as a staff photographer for the Sydney Morning Herald. Her works have been included in exhibitions in Sydney, Adelaide, New Zealand, and Singapore including Divided Worlds, Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide (2018). She has been awarded the Josephine Ulrick and Win Schubert Photography Award, Home of the Arts, Surfers Paradise (2018) and the Moran Contemporary Photographic Prize in 2019. In 2015 Dean presented the multi-sensory installation Here and Now assisted by the UNSW Creative Practice Lab, where she undertook a residency the following year. Her work is held in public and private collections including the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide, Parliament House Art Collection, Canberra, Artbank, Newcastle Art Gallery, Newcastle, New South Wales and Home of the Arts, Gold Coast, Queensland.

[i] Tamara Dean in correspondence 17 June, 2020.

[ii] Monique Ross, ‘Wild Researchers’, ABC, 4 November 2015, accessed 13 September 2019.