Fonthep

• Photographer
  Samantha Everton, Australia
• Studio
  Samantha Everton
• Website
  http://samanthaeverton.com

Everton draws upon elements of the folk tale "Sang Tong" to illuminate the fantasy worlds
of each child. Sang Tong—‘the Boy with the Golden Shell’. Derived from an old Thai folk
tale, Sang Tong was born into royalty but abandoned and later adopted by a giantess, who
disguised herself so that the boy would not feel like an outsider. That the children have
themselves been born in Thailand but adopted by families living in Melbourne lends the
series an immense poignancy. The imagery that accompanies each child was chosen by Everton
based on their individual personalities, “I’ve come to know these children and their
families intimately over the past few years through the Sanuk Club, a place where they
meet to play and celebrate their heritage”, says Everton who is herself the mother of an
adopted Thai boy, Chot. “These children live in two worlds. They identify themselves as
Thai but they're also everyday Aussie kids. I wanted to show both the harmony and the
tension between their dual realities.” In a symbolic interweaving of inner and outer
realms Everton creates a mood of transcendence and renascence amidst the cultural
variances. Each image subtly alludes to an individual biography and is titled with the
child’s name.

• Biography
  Samantha Everton is a Austraslian-based photographer with a taste for magic realism and seeing the absurd in everyday interactions. Samantha has won a number of awards including the prestigious Moran Contemporary Photographic Prize , highly Commended, the 23rd MacGregor Prize for Photography and the 2006 Australian Leica Photographer of the Year. Her work has been published and reviewed in numerous books and magazines around the world, including The NewYorker.
• Awards
  2018 Third Prize in Portraiture, Px3 Paris International Photography Awards, France 2018 Honourable Mention, Life Framer, Faces of Life International Portraiture Award 2015 Finalist, SCAP, Caloundra Regional Gallery Qld 2015 Winner, Third Place - Head On Portrait Prize, Sydney 2014 Second Prize in Portraiture, Px3 Paris International Photography Awards, France 2012 Two Girls Building Project Domain Hill property selected artist announced 2011 Finalist, Olive Cotton Photography Prze, Tweed Regional Gallery 2011 Finalist, Prometheus Art Prize 2010 Winner Px3 Paris International Photography Awards 2010 Finalist, London International Creative Competition 2010 Finalist, The Curchie National Emerging Art Award 2009 Honorable Mention, Px3 Paris Photography Prize 2009 Highly Commended Award, MORAN Contemporary Photographic Prize 2009 Selected for the core program of the Ballarat International Foto Biennale 2008 Finalist in the MORAN Contemporary Art Prize 2008 People's choice award winner in conceit '08, Corangamarah Art Prize. 2007 Px3 Paris International Photography Awards, peoples choice 1st place. 2006 Winner of the Twenty-Third McGregor Prize for Photography award. 2006 Highly Commended Award, Twenty-Third McGregor Prize for Photography 2006 Selected for inclusion in the New Yorker Magazine, April 2006 2005 Winner of the Australian Leica Documentary Photographer of the year award 2005 Charades selected for auction & sold at Sotheby's charity art auction for Girls On Top. 2005 Winner of Hardcopy: Digital Art exhibition, Gasworks art park 2005 Second place winner, Head On 2005 photographic portrait prize, Michael Nagy Gallery. 2005 33rd Alice Prize, Acquisition of work for Alice Springs art gallery permanent collection