Romola Nocum, THE PONTOON (DOCO 2022)

The Pontoon is moored 100m from the shore at South Beach in Fremantle. On a hot summer morning I arrived at dawn to document its stories. With a magnetic like pull, the pontoon seems to draw people from different parts of the community together. First to arrive were the Cold_Nips swimmers . Mainly millennials, they meet at a different beach every Wednesday for yoga and a swim at dawn. Numbering in the hundreds they swam out to the pontoon and flirted, preened and partied. The bay rang with their laughter. Swimming back to the beach, they then headed for coffee. work and study. Soon the senior citizens appeared. Donning bathing caps, rash vests and sensible hats they walked or swam laps of the water in front of the pontoon. Some fit and others frail , they called out to friends and gossiped whilst enjoying their daily exercise routines. The seniors drifted home for breakfast, and to read the newspapers. The pontoon now sat empty and waiting.Omnipresent and loved by all.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.