The Migrant

Migration: a state of change and movement; an attempt to depart from the past to forge a new beginning. Ariana Callejas Capra migrated to Australia from Costa Rica in 2001 – she has been a friend and a subject in several of my portraits over the years. This image was taken at a time of emotional upheaval in her life, yet her vulnerability is gracefully contained within her shrouded headdress and poised composure. The hand-painted background depicts a disused quarry in Bendigo, Victoria called Dai Gum San, Chinese for ‘Land of Hope and Promise’. Ariana’s portrait expresses an inner migration at a deeper level, a moment of challenge and urgent reconstruction.