Local artist Michelle Ansoul’s sepia-toned photographic prints reflect moments of her hometown Byron Bay over the course of four decades in the exhibition ‘Once Upon A Time’. These large-scale works, printed on cotton rag, evoke a sense of nostalgia and engross viewers in coastal landscapes, fostering a timeless bond with the environment. Inspired by Belongil Beach, the ‘Salt Print Series’, emerged during a vivid summer, using extracted salt and silver nitrate to create light-sensitive paper. These Byron Bay salt prints blend natural elements with scientific inquiry and a sustainable approach to photography.
Through the interplay of light, shadows, and chemical processes, negatives metamorphose into affirmatives, inviting viewers to interpret images through their own life experiences. Despite the intricacies of these methods, the heart of the work lies in staying attuned to the artist’s creative journey and immersing oneself in the emotions evoked by life’s visual narratives. This series, shot on analogue and printed on fiber-based paper, digitally toned for a vintage aesthetic, aims to transport viewers across temporal frames, inviting them to dwell in the past, present, and eternal now.
See this fabulous show at Gallery 3, Byron Bay, until Sunday.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
