Surfing Honeymooner's

Photographer Jeff Carter (1928-2010)

Date1965

Object number00027926

NamePhotograph

MediumSilver gelatin print

DimensionsMount / Matt size: 522 x 717 mm
Display dimensions (Frame): 550 x 745 x 45 mm

ClassificationsPhotographs

Credit LineANMM Collection

Terms

DescriptionIn 'Surfing Honeymooners' Carter captures the joy and adventure of newly married David and Jean, from Adelaide. The couple spent their first married weeks together on the northern New South Wales beaches, living out of their vehicle, camping and surfing. There were over a hundred images of the couple taken over a period of 10 days in 1965, all 35 mm and some in colour.HistoryStreet photography, made famous by French photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson, was a popular genre for Australian photographers such as Jeff Carter, who explored identity and culture though images of rural and coastal Australia. Between 1959 and 1965 Carter created a series of photographs which documented the experiences of beach goers during long lazy Saturday afternoons, at local competitions and while on holiday.SignificanceJeff Carter photographed Australians at rest and play, capturing the diversity of those who were drawn to the beach. His photographs are a valuable document of Australian beach culture in the 1960s, with 'Surfing Honeymooners' providing an intimate view of the role of the beach in the lives of many Australian couples and families.