The Ballarat International Foto Biennale presents the GradFoto 2023 exhibition, showcasing twenty-one finalists from ten universities across Australia and for the first time, New Zealand. This award celebrates the artistic excellence of graduating students, open to emerging contemporary artists and graduating students from selected Australian institutions whose artistic practice uses photography as its primary medium.

Three Highly Commended entries were awarded for their work.

Jade Jones for their series Braided Communities, 2023. International judge Virginia Woods-Jack said, ‘This body of work beautifully highlights the tenderness and care of ritual and its importance in affirming cultural identities. The observations are considered and participatory; you have afforded us a view from the inside instead of looking in from the outside. Congratulations, and I look forward to seeing more of your work.’

About the series

The rituals, traditions, and care of black hair within our community create a safe space for BPOC in Naarm, Melbourne. Our hair is versatile and transformative, it carries memories and stories that we create space for sharing and connecting with each other. These spaces reaffirm our identities and allow us to celebrate our diverse cultures through these hair practices. Spaces that are founded on the black experience create community. The video reflects on the importance and meaning of hair care for members of the widespread community.

This collaboration with my community allows a space to explore the complexities of our hair through the imagery, showing the processes and interactions we have with one another. It reflects on the bonds built from sitting through hours of tedious hair braiding and the sounds of the conversations that reinforce friendship and bonds with one another. There is tenderness and care that goes into these acts of hair care that go beyond the practice itself, reaffirming our identities and sense of self in these safe spaces. This project aims to intimately explore the importance that these practices have on our community as a whole.