The Folklore of Joan and Tony, 2022
Gillian Kayrooz, The Folklore of Joan and Tony, 2022 (1957 - 1969), 35mm scan giclee print, Merrylands, Australia. Photo Credit - Document Photography.
Gillian Kayrooz, Reminiscing Memorial Ave, Interview with Elizabeth Kayrooz and Matthew Kayrooz, 2022, audio recording, Parramatta, Australia.
The Folklore of Joan and Tony is an archive of recently discovered Kayrooz family 35mm scans. These rare and beautiful images are being shown to the public for the very first time. The collection spans from the late 1950’s to the early 1960’s, and captures life in the suburbs in the backyard of the Kayrooz family home in Merrylands, Western Sydney.
The installation recreates the backyard of 17 Memorial Ave Merrylands that is enlarged as an image on the wall behind. It features the classic hills hoist, banana trees, ma’s rose garden and pa’s homemade shed. Today this plot of land is more commonly known as the Merrylands Police Station.
The grass landing invites audiences to listen to my father and aunt who are frequently pictured in the collection of images as children. They reminisce antidotes of their childhood in the suburbs and highlight local life in the area of Cumberland, speaking to the generational change experienced in the neighborhood over the course of the past 70 years.
This body of work unexpectedly initiated an intimate and personal development period between myself and my family. Discovering this collection of never before seen images together allowed us to reflect on our family lineage; from migration to arrival, and the fruitful nature of Western Sydney’s ever-evolving ecosystem of culture and community.
Thank you to my family, my aunt, Elizabeth my dad, Matthew and my grandparents Joan and Tony.
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Cumberland City Council and City of Parramatta are neighbouring local government areas in Western Sydney, all that separates is an arbitrary border. Granville Centre Art Gallery, which resides within Cumberland, has partnered with Parramatta Artists’ Studios to celebrate what a neighbourhood can mean, what makes it special, why do we live where we do and then how we do connect. Artists Marian Abboud, Heath Franco, Rebecca Gallo, Tarik Ahlip & Linda Brescia, Gillian Kayrooz, Venessa Possum, Kalanjay Dhir and participants of the Youth Mentoring Program have created new works that explore their own neighbourhoods and communities, shining a light on why Western Sydney is so special.
Cumberland City Council and City of Parramatta are neighbouring local government areas in Western Sydney, all that separates is an arbitrary border. Granville Centre Art Gallery, which resides within Cumberland, has partnered with Parramatta Artists’ Studios to celebrate what a neighbourhood can mean, what makes it special, why do we live where we do and then how we do connect. Artists Marian Abboud, Heath Franco, Rebecca Gallo, Tarik Ahlip & Linda Brescia, Gillian Kayrooz, Venessa Possum, Kalanjay Dhir and participants of the Youth Mentoring Program have created new works that explore their own neighbourhoods and communities, shining a light on why Western Sydney is so special.
Gillian Kayrooz, The Folklore of Joan and Tony, 2022 (1957 - 1969), 35mm scan giclee print, Merrylands, Australia.
Photo Credit - Document Photography.
Gillian Kayrooz, Reminiscing Memorial Ave, Interview with Elizabeth Kayrooz and Matthew Kayrooz, 2022, audio recording, Parramatta, Australia.