AGENDER: Women in Photography. A platform for change

Sydney, Australia, 1 March 2018 – AGENDER – a collective of leading female photographers from the art, advertising and fashion industries – launches with an exhibition held at Hyatt Regency, Friday March 9 in conjunction with International Women’s Day.

AGENDER is a celebration of the great talent, wisdom and experience of women in the photographic industry in Australia. Its key goal is to bolster the careers of female photographers and, in turn not only inspire a new generation of young women, but to also recognise and work to bridge the vast gap that stands between photography students and a sustainable career for female photographers in Australia today. 

AGENDER has teamed up with Canon Australia, SUNSTUDIOS and Hyatt to co-host a series of exciting events at Hyatt Regency culminating in the AGENDER public opening show, featuring Australia’s most talented female photographers, including Anna Pogossova, Cara O’Dowd, Carlotta Moyes, Cybele Malinowski, Danielle Harte, Juliet Taylor, Liz Ham, Michele Aboud and Petrina Tinsley.

What started with the spark of an opening exhibition for International Women’s Day has also flamed out into a week of celebrations, coined International Women’s Week. Through a series of lunches, talks and think sessions, IWW will launch AGENDER, tackling the boundaries and paradigms that women come across within photography.

“Given the current climate, AGENDER is designed to be a powerful alliance for female creatives that will affect change both for the women taking photographs and the women in photographs,” says Cybele Malinowski, founder of AGENDER. “There are plenty of female photographers, more than men in fact. Looking at the hard stats, they are getting the work, but they are funnelling in to lesser paid areas of photography. They are not getting represented by the photo agencies and they are not getting the high paid jobs in the commercial world. By banding together with photographers and key people within the industry, I want to look at why this is happening, and how we can ultimately affect change.”

“AGENDER has come around at the very best time... There couldn’t be a better moment than right now to celebrate being a woman, and rally with this zeitgeist of contemporary feminist politics to acknowledge the vast gap between males and females in our industry. In 20 years working as a professional photographer I have seen many changes, but sadly this divide has continued. We need to stand together and create a space that is nourishing, supportive and inspiring for the younger photographers contemplating a career that can be so incredibly empowering and liberating,” – Fashion photographer Liz Ham

"When I was initially invited to be part of AGENDER, there was clarity from the beginning of what this could mean, not just for my peers and myself, but for who could benefit from the experience and wisdom that each and every photographer involved would offer.” – Internationally renowned portrait photographer Michele Aboud

"Starting my career over twenty seven years ago I’ve seen so much change in shifting perceptions towards females in the industry up to this day. Starting as a freelance photographer I could not name at the time one other female who worked in my chosen genre of food, lifestyle and travel photography in my home base of Sydney. While I was a novelty at the time, I’m more than happy to say that the industry is populated with some real heavyweights in the photographic arena today. I’m excited about the future and for the opportunities such collaborations like AGENDER, with the wonderful support of Canon, can enable.” – Food photographer Petrina Tinslay

Half of Australian photographers are female, however women are a minority in photography’s high paying fields of advertising and fashion, earning a quarter less than men overall in this industry. AGENDER wants to encourage women to push through and succeed in the areas of photography that have been historically dominated by men. These women are examples that it can be done. Through banding together with key figures in the media, advertising and magazine worlds, AGENDER seeks to create a powerful alliance that can instigate change for the women who take photos, as well as the women who feature in them. 

Profits from the events will be donated the Sydney Women’s Fund.

AGENDER Exhibition, starting Friday, March 9

Featuring Australia’s leading female photographers from the art, advertising and fashion industries. Sponsored by Canon Australia, SUNSTUDIOS, Moët and Hyatt Regency.

Canon Gallery, Hyatt Regency Hotel, 161 Sussex St, Sydney
Open to the public, Monday – Friday, 6:30am – 4:00pm