Scrap Doyle by Max Doyle
Scrap Doyle by Max Doyle at Saint Cloche gallery is a collection from the photographer’s personal scrapbooks, pulling us into intimate moments starting from his life in the 90s.
Words: Hande Renshaw I Photography: Max Doyle
‘I love photographing people. I love the personal connections that I make when I’m on a shoot, it’s so important and really allows me to capture the essence of my subjects,’ says Max Doyle, pictured. Photo: Max Doyle
‘The scrapbook process is so personal and really puts that sense of nostalgia in the forefront,’ says Max Doyle. Scrap #269 by Max Doyle.
Sydney-based photographer Max Doyle captures a somewhat grungy elegant rebellion through his lens.
Best known for his iconic fashion imagery and striking portraiture, which spans the last 30 years, Max discovered his passion for photography during a period of great change: the development of the grunge era in early 90s London.
During this early time, the photographer began to produce dynamic interpretations of contemporary counterculture, exploring the ways in which postmodern art and fashion collide.
Scrap Doyle at Saint Cloche gallery, is Max’s collection of images from those years, providing an intimate glimpse into his work and personal life.
From Max’s scrapbook entries, pages from notebooks have been blown up into large photographic prints, which are included in the exhibition. But these are no ordinary scrapbooks, within their pages are an impressive line-up of portraits including familiar celebrity faces such as Margot Robbie, Billie Eilish and Emily Ratajkowski.
‘I first started scrapbooking early in my career as a photographer. My notebooks are a series of private visual diaries (in the form of Moleskin books) documenting my career in a way, packed with polaroids, the by-product of fashion shoots in the 90s, and a little later a place to preserve photos that I’d developed, as well as handprints, negatives, and sketches,’ says Max.
“With some of the photos, I can be looking at them and they trigger nostalgia so strongly, that I feel like I’m back in London – it tends to be the rougher, more raw pictures that have the strongest pull and really take me back to those times.”
A contrast to the digital age we live in, Max’s photographs of people, places and objects embody a raw, organic and spontaneous style.
‘Scrapbooking has always been a way for me to harness the purity and spontaneous nature of the work, allowing me to be more creative and personal and stay connected,’ he says.
The collection of photographs evoke strong feelings of nostalgia for Max, ‘Lately I feel very overwhelmed by nostalgia, like I could be in a different world… and a different person. With some of the photos, sometimes I can be looking at them and they trigger nostalgia so strongly, that I feel like I’m actually there, that I’m back in London. When I think about it, those years were like being in a crazy 90s rock ‘n’ roll movie!’
Shooting on film has always been a strong passion for the photographer, where it’s more about taking time to truly connect with each image, ‘I record an image and then I move onto the next thing… and not engage with that image again for perhaps days, weeks or months, reconnecting with it down the track, whereas with digital, it’s right there, right then and now, and your always assessing and re-assesing – it takes the magic away.’
The solo presentation will also include 36 one-off edition mini prints from Max’s treasured scrapbooks.
SCRAP DOYLE AT SAINT CLOCHE
WEDNESDAY 25TH MAY - SUNDAY 5TH JUNE
37 MacDonald Street, Paddington, Sydney
