Metamorphosis

At 16, an art teacher told Hayley she wasn’t creative. She spent the next 20 years frustrated, anxious, and resentful, excluded from her natural means of expression. Eventually she found a passion for photography, which gave her a way to engage with the world, yet a camera to hide behind. 

Through her photographic artworks - a blend of self-portraits and photos from her travels - Hayley found a way to transmute her feelings into stories. These stories provide a doorway to escape into other more interesting realities, where people and the natural environment coexist harmoniously with just a touch of magic.

'Metamorphosis' symbolises my journey and transition into becoming an artist, drawing on the themes of baptism and the mythology of the phoenix's rebirth. It is a self-portrait, photographed at the beach on Australia Day, during a time when questions of identity were swirling in my subconscious. For most of my life, I believed I had no creative ability - so 'Metamorphosis' serves as a reminder that with persistence and passion, anything is possible. I hope it inspires others to follow their dreams.