© National Portrait Gallery 2025
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Jerrems was consistently in and of the world that she photographed. She drew vivid narratives into focus by connecting with her sitters and inserting herself into her scenes. This photograph of the moon shot through the hospital window conveys the retreat from the world that was imposed on her in her final months. Because Jerrems never got the chance to define these final photographs, we are left to decide whether this haunting image is simply an incidental shot, or a profound reckoning with her place in the cosmos as she faces death. Looking back, as in so much of her work, the potential for allegory is resonant.
National Library of Australia
© The Estate of Carol Jerrems
Carol Jerrems: Portraits is a major exhibition of one of Australia’s most influential photographers. Jerrems’ intimate portraits of friends, lovers and artistic peers transcend the purely personal and have come to shape Australian visual culture.
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