Art / Travis Alabanza
Rene Matić’s domestic portraits of Travis Alabanza to be exhibited at Martin Parr Foundation
Artist Rene Matić’s series of diaristic portraits of their friend, the Bristol-born writer, performer and theatre-maker Travis Alabanza, are set to go on show at the Martin Parr Foundation on July 13.
The images document the developing relationship between the two artists, as it moved away from the dancefloor towards quieter, more domestic settings.
“Many of the relationships that permeate the QTPOC (queer, trans, people of colour) community have been birthed in clubs and on dancefloors,” reflects Matić.
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Travis at the bus stop, Hillfields, Bristol, 2023
Travis and Mia having breakfast, Bristol, 2023
Travis at home, Bristol, 2023
“They are relationships that exist when the room is always too loud to converse (with words) but you show up and you show out with concern and care together – even just for the night – until the next time.”
The exhibition title – a girl for the living room – derives from a bell hooks quote, which Matić called to mind during a phone call with Alabanza in which Travis confessed to being a ‘homebody’.
Travis waiting for a kebab, Bristol, 2023
Travis book Launch, London, 2022
Travis in the alleyway, Hillfields, Bristol, 2023
Matić’s photographs show the intimacy and vulnerability of day to day life “lit by a table lamp instead of a disco ball”, from fry ups with friends to book launches, backstage preparation, kitchens and bus stops.
“What I am learning – through this project and just life in general,” admits Matić, “is how brave one must be to let someone get to know them.”
Southbank Centre dressing room I, London, 2023
Southbank Centre Dressing Room II, London, 2023
Travis and Rene in Mia’s studio, 2023
A girl for the living room by Rene Matić is at Martin Parr Foundation from July 13-September 17 (gallery opening times are Thursday to Sunday, 10.30am-5.30pm; closed Monday to Wednesday. Entry to the exhibiton is free. For more information, visit www.martinparrfoundation.org.
All photos: Rene Matić
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