Artist statement: French philosopher Gaston Bachelard argued that the house is a psychic state. From cellar to attic, houses shape our thoughts, memories and dreams. Since childhood, I’ve been intrigued by Australia’s uncannily preserved ‘living museum’ homes. The absences and presences in these spaces propel me into a reverie. To this day, as I tiptoe through the whispering walls of genteel colonial relics such as Elizabeth Farm, Meerogal, Ripponlea, and Carrick Hill, (among others), I wonder about the women who moved within these private spheres. How did these domestic spaces shape and hold their hopes, desires and failings? What echoes of their lives reverberate in the antiquated dressing tables, ornaments, drawers, combs, chamber pots, and pillowcases that remain? In painting these most intimate feminine spaces, I seek to peer into their vacant mirrors and capture a reflection of contemporary women I know. Creating each portrait involved a heart-warming discussion with my subject. We chose a life event they wanted to explore emotionally. (Such as impending childbirth, a significant birthday, release from a toxic relationship or reconciling a childhood trauma). They selected a room from my documentation of historic houses that spoke to them, and we captured this precious present through posture, costume and gesture. For me, nostalgia feels like a return to somewhere that is either dangerously sad or comfortably safe. Both are dishonest. Perhaps, through this series I’m seeking to capture intimate moments in time that hold, however briefly, a simple honesty.