Peter Hadjimichael

Peter Hadjimichael is a Blue Mountains based photographer. Photography is an integral part of his self-expression. After many years of practice, Peter has developed an eye for finding beauty in the ordinary and even in what is often considered unsightly. This may take the form of random marks on a supermarket carpark, miniature worlds on rusty metal or the landscape after devastating bush fires. He finds that this helps to maintain a fresh outlook in the face of the ordinariness of daily life.

Since living in the Blue Mountains his practice has centred on the natural environment. The main areas of his work include traditional landscape photography, both colour and monochrome. He is also interested in macro and abstract photography. In his images, genres are not always distinct and separate. It is this overlap that fascinates him.

Photography engages and connects Peter with nature, providing a counterpoint to modern life. He seeks to create images that reach beyond the literal and that invite subjective responses. His images direct the viewer’s attention to often unperceived elements of the natural world.

Artist statement

“What appeals to me about photography is that, although it is apparently realistic, great photography in fact allows the viewer to interpret the image in a deeply personal and often metaphorical way. I endeavour to create images that reach beyond the literal and that invite subjective responses. In sharing my images with others, I invite the viewer to reflect upon often unperceived elements of our world.”. – Peter Hadjimichael, 2019

ARTIST'S SIGNATURE IMAGES

(Available for purchase within Selected/Collected Works sections)

Stone fish

This photograph immediately suggested the aquatic to me. It is a collection of pebbles transported to this arrangement by flowing water in times of heavy rain. Its fishlike outline and ochre tones echo the ancient petroglyphs of indigenous Australians. This image was made on a large rock platform, near the township of Linden. Many signs of pre-European habitation may be found in this area.

Blue rust

This is a close-up of the surface of a car, dumped on the edge of our World Heritage listed, Blue Mountains National Park. Despite my immediate annoyance at discovering more evidence of people’s thoughtless actions, I was soon engrossed in this miniature world of cerulean blue and reddish brown.

Morning light

In this more traditional image, I feel I have captured that feeling of freshness and optimism one feels when the morning sun breaks through the mist, after a period of rain. The soft light and gentle colours add to the sense of romanticism. Living in the Blue Mountains allows me to quickly immerse myself in the landscape as the opportunity arises.

Jurassic

This image appeared to me on a piece of discarded sheet metal left to weather in a suburban back yard. The shapes within, somehow evoke the pre-historic to me. I take great pleasure in discovering hidden worlds amongst the unremarkable.

Sandstone figure

The anthropomorphic profile evident in this photograph emerged from the roof of a dark rock overhang, where I had gone searching for an aboriginal hand print I had spotted many years ago. Having found the handprint and also a small collection of artefacts that somebody had gathered, it seemed fitting that the presence of the ancients materialised above me.

Transient pool

Living near nature allows one to experience the landscape in its often-changing forms. I walk this track often but rarely do the weather conditions combine to produce this ethereal mood. Choosing monochrome for this image adds an air of timelessness to the scene. Like much of the Blue Mountains, this area experiences periods of drought, destructive fires, floods and renewal.