The photo which inspired this painting was taken circa 1907 at Bronte beach. It depicts an early lifesaving reel being used for a rescue which takes place in dangerous surf. The photo featured only men and boys performing the rescue because women did not participate in surf lifesaving until the 1980’s. However, I painted the figure in white to resemble a woman, rather than a boy, as a way of ‘correcting’ history – albeit on a canvas with paint J. The ‘Beach Closed” sign is an inclusion from more modern times, and it connects the past of Bronte to its present-day lifesaving service.
Acrylic on canvas 1m x 1m