In a bid to capture life throughout this major moment in modern history, The Ballarat International Foto Biennale has partnered with the United Kingdom’s FORMAT International Photography Festival and Ireland’s Gallery of Photography to create a visual record of the COVID-19 crisis through Instagram.
Inspired by the 1937 Mass Observation project in Britain, the project – titled Mass Isolation Australia – invites people (budding photographers and professional photographers alike) to snap a photo of life right now and share their photographs to build an online visual archive of this extraordinary moment in history.
“The explosion in smartphone technology has opened up the world of photography to more people than ever before and we wanted to capture the COVID-19 event in a meaningful way,” Ballarat Foto Biennale artistic director Fiona Sweet explains.
The project – like many around the world – is absolutely free to join and open to people worldwide.
Head along to the Mass Isolation Australia Instagram page to get a feel for the project then get snapping. If you want the chance to be featured, you can either post your photos on Instagram with #massisolation and #massisolationAUS or send them a direct message on Instagram.
Selected posts will also be shared on Ballarat Foto and Mass Isolation Australia Instagram feeds.
An exhibition based on the project is also being planned for the 2021 Ballarat International Foto Biennale.
Feature Image: Ballarat photographer Peter Kervarec’s picture of deserted Dana St.
Second Image: By @nicola_stephenson as part of the Mass Isolation Project.