Imagine never having seen a photograph of yourself.
In this overexposed age of digital cameras it is almost impossible to believe, but this is what Kate Baker found when she began photographing disadvantaged youth at Sydney refuge, Oasis.
"It took Brendan three weeks before he saw the photo I took of him." says Baker. "He was afraid of viewing it. He'd never had a photo of himself before."
And each of the 41 of Kate's subjects have their own stories.
Emma, 20, came to Oasis when she was 16. "My mum was a binge drinker and turned violent and was really strict. She threw bricks at our feet, flogged us with branches.""
She says she was surprised when Kate asked to take her photo. "I didn't smile (for the picture). I was thinking about my past."
Ella, 22, is planning a European escape but 2 years ago was at Oasis, "in between houses".
Of her photograph she says: "I'm glad I made my mark. It was part of me becoming a real person. Back then my life just revolved around drugs, I never realised what could be."
The photographs are taken on a large format film camera from the 60s.
Baker wanted to create a photographic space between her and her subject that was personal, almost ceremonial. By using film, none of the images can be erased, each is permanent.
"They've been told all their life that they're not important," says Baker. "Now they have huge framed photographs of themselves hanging on a wall. They are significant."
The photographs have been collected into a hard cover book "Fridays at Oasis", with all proceeds from sales going to the refuge, Oasis. The exhibition runs at the Meyer Gallery, Darlinghurst until October 26.
