Girt by Sea by Tony Hewitt and Denis Glennon

Red mud is exposed by the tides in King Sound, near Derby, captured soon after take-off in the Kimberley, during the early morning light. Image by Tony Hewitt and Denis Glennon.
Red mud is exposed by the tides in King Sound, near Derby, captured soon after take-off in the Kimberley, during the early morning light. Image by Tony Hewitt and Denis Glennon.

Tony Hewitt and Denis Glennon have spent 31 days following the nation’s coastlines by air. This unique showcase comprises a stunning collection of 100 large-format aerial images of Australia’s coastline. “Girt by Sea started as an ambitious dream and now it’s a lived experience," Hewitt says. “More than that, the collection means that we can now hold the understanding of those three words in our hands.”

“The collection expresses what Girt by Sea means to us – it’s the emotional response to what we saw a point in time captured in beautiful, large-format images,” says Denis Glennon. “It’s the result of our daily decision to focus on what we actually find, not on what we expect to find – that’s the spirit of exploration!”

Image by Tony Hewitt and Denis Glennon.
Receding tides leave behind familiar shapes in the mud near the most southern point of the
Gulf of Carpentaria in Qld. Photography by Tony Hewitt & Denis Glennon.

The 34,213km journey mirrors the exploration of the intrepid first explorers and their record of largely inhospitable regions. Because like those 19th century wanderers, Hewitt and Glennon did not set out with a neatly packed agenda – rather, they worked reactively, guided by what they discovered.

“I hope people share the same emotional response of ‘Wow – look at that!’ that we did when we encountered these places,” says Tony Hewitt. “It doesn’t really matter where it is. What is so striking is the texture, colour, and shape of our coastline. We have in our minds a hard line dividing land from sea, but it’s actually a much more fluid transition.”

The latest in a series of major collaborations for Canon Australia, Canon Australia’s Director of Consumer Imaging, Jason McLean says that they're extremely proud of what they have been able to achieve together with some of the most creative minds in Australia.

 

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November

Brisbane: Until 13 July 2025. Amateur Brisbane photographer Alfred Henrie Elliott (1870-1954) extraordinary images lay dormant for decades until they were discovered only recently. This exhibition is curated by seven Brisbane photographers.

Sydney: The photographs in Max Dupain: Student Life were taken at the University of Sydney in the early 1950s, a period of rapid change marked by the politics of the Cold War.

Perth: Until 18 May 2025. Henry Roy – Impossible Island draws on 40-years of recollections and observations as it brings together 113 photos taken from 1983 to 2023.

Melbourne: 30/11– 15/12. Focal/Vocal showcases the photographic talents of 7 graduates who use the medium of photography for the exploration of the human condition.

December

Sydney: 5 December – 1 February. Photofields presents the Southern Sky Astrophotography 2024 exhibition, the 20th edition of the David Malin Awards.

Sydney: 6 & 7 December. Special-edition free tours of Sydney Observatory will explore the site's history of photographic observation.

Sydney: One off event. 6 December. In this conversation, they expand on their photographic trajectories: from years shared under the stars in the Australian outback, to Autio's studies of the undersea world and Parke's most recent work inspired by NASA’s Golden Record.

Sydney: One off event. 6 December 8-10pm. Directed by Liselle Mei, Human Computer is a short film exploring the work of female scientific assistants.

Sydney: One off event > 7 Dec 1pm-5pm. Join artist and photographer Yvette Hamilton for a cameraless photography workshop to create lumen prints at Sydney Observatory.

Sydney: One off event. 7 December 1-5pm. For this workshop, participants are invited to bring a printed photograph of Country, landscape, or place to respond to.