My painting 'The Selfie' has been selected as a finalist in the 2016 Emerging Artist Award, presented by fortyfivedownstairs in conjunction with Future Leaders.

My piece will hang alongside 16 other artists’ work at the fortyfivedownstairs gallery, 45 Flinders Lane, Melbourne, until the 2nd of July.

I've included the written statement accompanying my work below for those who are unable to view the exhibition in person. It's a great privilege to be selected, and I wish all finalists the best of luck.

"In the time I’ve spent preparing this statement, 532,079 people have taken photos of their faces and uploaded them to Instagram using the hashtag #selfie. Never before in history have we had the tools to self-publish our daily minutia and bodies so explicitly. We share so much of ourselves via social media, but how much are selfies used as a device to hide what we are truly experiencing? In depicting the peculiar and often disturbing nature of the selfie’, my work takes aim at the selectively curated life. Painting on a polyester surface with artificial lighting, I intended to convey the more superficial and dark undertones of the selfie culture – the crafted and masked identity. I invite the viewer to consider the deeper meanings behind why individuals snap and share their selfies online. In effect, the painting is an exploration of the disparity between the authentic and disembodied virtual self."