Iris ELGAR
Balwyn High School
VCE Studio Arts 3&4
Artist statement: The queer scene in Balwyn is virtually non-existent. Growing up as a lesbian in a conservative neighbourhood led to feelings of isolation and loneliness. For the longest time, I didn’t know or see others like me. To demonstrate this, I photographed my close friend adorned in campy fabric to represent an internal struggle with feeling out of place as a young queer person.
Also known as Giclee prints or bubble-jet prints, pigment ink-jet prints are generated by computer printers from digital or scanned files using dye-based or pigment-based inks. A series of nozzles spray tiny droplets of ink onto the paper surface in a precise pattern that corresponds to the digital image file. In dye-based prints the ink soaks into the paper, whereas in pigment-based prints the ink rests and dries on top of the paper surface.
Whilst the term is broad, pigment ink-jet prints have come to be associated with prints produced on fine art papers. They are the most versatile and archival method of printing available to photographers today. A wide variety of material on which an image can be printed with such inks are available, including various textures and finishes such as matte photo paper, watercolour paper, cotton canvas or pre-coated canvas.
