Leila Jeffreys work in the exhibition ‘Birds’ in Grote Kerk, Breda
October 23, 2023
In Breda the work of Australian photographer Leila Jeffreys is part of the groupshow “Birds, through the lens of international photographers”. Together some 14 top international photographers give their own vision of these wondrous creatures.
The photographs show the variety of worlds in which birds live and at the same time raise questions about threats to their habitats, of which climate change is the most alarming.
Leila Jeffreys, an acclaimed photographic and video artist who lives in Sydney, Australia, is best known for captivating images of birds from Australia and around the world that explore and subvert the traditions of portraiture. She collaborates with conservationists, ornithologists and sanctuaries around the world to find her subjects before forging an intimate relationship with the birds that she photographs.
That the exhibition takes place in the Grote Kerk Breda gives it an extra dimension; traditionally, birds and their wings have been seen as symbols of connection between man and the higher. Many civilizations, for example Indian, Egyptian, Assyrians, Minoin and Mayans include birds as spirits. In the Grote Kerk Breda, too, we find a variety of birds and their symbolic meanings.
Brought together by Atelier EXB in the series of books Des oiseaux the photographers are Albarrán Cabrera, Roger Ballen, Graciela Iturbide, Leila Jeffreys, Rinko Kawauchi, Michael Kenna, Kyunghee Lee, Christophe Maout, Byung-Hun Min, Yoshinori Mizutani, Paolo Pellegrin, Bernard Plossu, Pentti Sammallahti and Terri Weifenbach.