The New China Restaurant, Bendigo
2009
Inkjet on watercolour paper
70 x 47 centimeters
This print is based on a photo I snapped because I liked the way the young guy who was walking in front of me was dressed. When I studied the photo on my screen my eyes fell on another detail, the New China Restaurant sign and the fact it was mounted on a building which evidently had been constructed for another purpose than an eating house.
When it came to constructing the scene, I decided that the setting was to be at night, that the New China sign would be illuminated and the addition of the couple walking towards the lone individual. There is always an uncertainty about encountering others in a quiet night-time street and even though I didn't want a hint of menace, I liked the idea that these parties would have to acknowledge the brief presence of strangers in a public space.