Joan O'Brien Encore Historic Costume Group (Tracksuits of St Marys series)

Throughout 2005, fashion photographer Harold David and curator Victoria Harbutt worked in St Marys a suburb in Sydney's west, attending workshops and community and sporting events where particpants were photographed in their best tracksuits. The resulting series Tracksuits of St Marys is a considered and beautifully resolved celebration of the community and its generosity, it acts as a dedication to the continuing efforts of this community to maintain and improve itself through positive activity. The garment is the common focus across this photographic series, and the accompanying multidisciplinary exhibition explored the Tracksuit as an emblem of style, and physical and political activism.