Perfectly Imperfect V2.0 | Mel Alderton

Bribie Island photographer Mel Alderton brings a personal exploration of beauty, grief and change to Obsidian Bide Art Gallery & Studio in December, with Perfectly Imperfect V2.0 on show. The Shipwrecked Photographer uses softly lit photographs of flowers to look beyond the idealised versions of life presented on social media. Translucent petals, shifting colours and curling blooms become a visual language for experiences that are not always visible from the outside. The original series developed in 2021 during grief, trauma, depression and COVID lockdowns. It began with overhearing a young mother's passing comment in a café, about everyday life: "It's not like it is on Instagram." Perfectly Imperfect V2.0 continues that enquiry, reflecting on grief as a shared experience that moves in waves and cycles. The exhibition also marks a new local connection for Mel, who relocated to Bribie Island after operating a photography studio in Wentworth Point, Sydney. She completed a Diploma of P