Encounters is Rohan Hutchinson's latest project that situates itself in Victorian High Plains. Like many mountain ranges, the region entices curiosity and adventure, a land where seasonal trends work in conjunction with seasonal activities, and the cycle, until recently, remained uninterrupted, the 2019 bushfires evidence of this.
His approach began with photographic investigations, a land previously observed from a close distance and one he assumed knowledge of. Setting out on monthly multi-day treks that spanned two- years, his assignment was to capture the landscape's seasonal transformation.
In the early phases of this project, his trajectory quickly changed; in field-work, reading the environment through a Eurocentric seasonal calendar proved ineffective, and the encounters with the macro and micro-environment exposed a new unseen landscape. Weather conditions, previously assumed, shifted without notice, and the changing transformation presented a unique environment of uncertainty and fragility.
What began with an investigation into ecology and geology quickly became self-reflective;
This publication, two years in the making presents the findings from the project, each describing a macro or micro encounter of the environment, and as a complete volume, the climatic anomalies taking place within the diverse landscape.
Signed print included – 20.5 x 25.5 cm, prints vary from the one pictured.
80 pages, 22.3 x 29.7 cm, softcover, acb press (Melbourne).