SIGN OF ACCEPTANCE
“I am CJ. I was born Deaf into a hearing family. I am a fully signing Deaf person and I’m…
“My work focuses on creating platforms for people who experience multiple discriminations. The power of their stories, and their portraits becoming a part of our visual landscape is integral in ensuring misconceptions and stereotypes are shattered. The portraits are all printed on larger than life mirror panels, which are not easy to see, in fact it takes a bit of time to aline yourself with the image so that you can see it, and when you do, what you also see, is a reflection of yourself. Art often imitates life, and in doing so, we need to take time to think and challenge our own perceptions, rather than challenge someone else’s lived-experience. The images of Outing Disability are printed on 1.6 metre high mirrored panels. To see the image clearly you need to take your time and move around the image until it appears clearly in front of you. This process is a reflection of the time that people should take to look beyond their own misconceptions about other people and discover the person within. When you can see the image clearly you catch glimpses of your own reflection. This also mirrors the journey of understanding and empathy when we feel a connection to another person’s story, often because somewhere in their story we find part or a glimpse of our own. My intent is to engage the viewer to discover our similarities rather than our differences. Through our similarities, a greater understanding of our differences can, I hope, create a more tolerant environment.”
– Photographer, Belinda Mason Knierim OAM
“I am CJ. I was born Deaf into a hearing family. I am a fully signing Deaf person and I’m…
“My name is Titi, I’m a gender queer dyke. People will desexualise you if you are disabled. Sexuality is an energy…
“I am Daniel. I am proud and strong about who I am. I am gay and I have an intellectual…
“My name’s Yvette. I’m a mum and I was born with a neural deafness in both ears. I wasn’t out…
“I sometimes feel like I’m in the too hard basket. Not only do I have a disability but I am…
Rebecca & Jamayaha, 2013NSW, Australia Artist : Belinda Mason Series : Outing Disability Size : 850mm x 580mm Type :…
“I’m Sarah, Kat and I are primary partners. I have Multiple Sclerosis and spend much of my time in a…
Rob and Andre, NSW 2013 Artist : Belinda Mason Series : Outing Disability Size : 850mm x 580mm Type :…
“My name is Meredith. I had a large aneurysm when I was 16. In hospital I realised I was probably…
“My name is Georgia. I was born with cerebral palsy. It has a profound impact on who I am, as…
“I’m Mark. I’ve got an intellectual disability. I’m blind. My cousin, he knows I’m gay. He told me all about…
I’m Anthony. I was born gay. In the evenings I go out to the city where there are a lot…
“My name is Bryan. I’m Deaf, gay and Aboriginal. I grew up in a family that is completely Deaf so…
“Don’t judge a disability by it’s visibility” Sage Selenite Amethyst, 2018NSW, Australia Artist : Belinda Mason Series : Outing Disability…
“My name is Michael. I have an intellectual disability and I’m gay. For people with an intellectual disability to be…
“My name is Michael. I used to be a painter and decorator. Being gay, HIV positive, and now having a…
Nathan & Aek, 2013NSW, Australia Artist : Belinda Mason Series : Outing Disability Size : 850mm x 580mm Type :…
Stephen, 2013NSW, Australia Artist : Belinda Mason Series : Outing Disability Size : 850mm x 580mm Type : Duraclear on…
“I’m Steve. I was born in a female’s body. It didn’t occur to me I could be transgender because I’d…
“I am Terrence. I’m HIV positive. I have dementia, Parkinson’s and a mental illness. I have good days and bad…
“Everything that is built in the world around us is designed by people for people. It can be designed to…
“I think I’m just as capable as any other person, just in different ways.” Iz Connell, 2018NSW, Australia Artist :…
“There’s space in you, there’s space in the community for you to be able to express yourself” Harley Mahon, 2018NSW,…
“Able bodied people, straight people, cis-gendered people, need to stop and realise that sometimes they don’t have all the answers,…
“It’s really important to create more visibility, to get out there and talk about your experiences, share your story and…