Sarah Stockman’s Bad Gals Club Photographs
Photographer Sarah Stockman takes us inside one of the many private feminist groups on Facebook.
Can you tell us a bit about the Bad Gals Club?
Bad Gals Club is one of many closed feminist Facebook groups that have popped up in the past couple years. Originally we were mostly people from Melbourne but we’ve expanded to include members from the rest of Australia and overseas. It started as a group of musicians looking for a place to network and just talk about life. Now it’s a safe space or as close as we can get to that, for anyone who identifies as a Bad Gal and wants to be a part of an online community.
How did you come across it?
It’s a private closed group so to become a member someone who is already a member has to add you. My friend added me out of the blue one day back when the group hadn’t reached its 1,000-gal cap yet, so I was approved by an admin pretty much straight away. At first I had no idea what it was, but it very quickly became the only reason I go on Facebook.
What are your Bad Gals credentials?
I think a Bad Gal is free to define themselves as long as it doesn’t cut down or oppress another Bad Gal. So really my Bad Gal credentials are just that, a ‘screw your social conditioning’ I’m here to speak for myself kinda attitude, a belief that we are all so much more than others have perceived us to be in the past or unfortunately present, a love for all my fellow BGs and a desire to listen and share with them all.
What have you taken from the Club?
It’s such a hard thing to pin down because it’s forever evolving, as I’m still a member. So other than this series which really is just the gift that keeps on giving, I’ve made friends, I’ve felt supported and received advice when I needed it, and I got to give back when others needed the same. It’s given me a community driven to support and educate each other as they navigate the world as an intersectional feminist. It’s given us a place to be unashamed to be angry or sexual or sad or proud, you’re free to be exactly who you are, and who you might normally hide online or in your everyday life. It’s a constant source of self-reflection and an opportunity to learn and better yourself. Also it’s just so fun, it’s really hilarious a lot of the time because it’s so honest. It’s like going out for drinks with a 1,000 close friends but you’re actually just sitting on your couch and they’re these people, some that you know and some that you really don’t, but you feel close because you’re all a part of the same thing.
When did you get the idea to do a series of the women involved?
As a photographer I compulsively feel the need to document my life and those around me. This group has been a significant part of my life and online activity for the past year so naturally I wanted to try to capture it. I also don’t think there are enough women photographing women in the way that they would like to be depicted.
Were members open to it?
I posted in the group originally thinking I’d get a handful of responses, but the response I got was far more enthusiastic than I was expecting, which was great but also meant I had to choose between people at the beginning. Really no convincing was needed at all, everyone that volunteered was overjoyed to be a part of it and were so open and accommodating I really couldn’t have been happier with it all.
Same goes for when I did the first interview about the series, everyone was really on board, we discussed with the admins what would be appropriate to share with the outside world and what wouldn’t. Obviously it’s a private community and talking about what goes on inside needed to be approached with sensitivity. Right from the start, before I knew this series would gain any attention, I told everyone that they had full control over their images; that the images at the heart of it all are something special for them and I, and subsequently would never be published anywhere without their consent. I’ve stuck to that and everyone seems really thrilled and honoured to be a part of something that’s being used as a platform to talk about online spaces for women and non-binary people.
What did you want to capture in these portraits? For the most part, I make work for my own satisfaction and for the people I photograph. Portraits have been my main creative outlet or subject matter for a while now, whether I choose to embed more meaning or discuss things within it, or if I’m just out there to take pictures of the people around me and document our lives. I’ve always gone into shooting my friends or strangers/models with an outlook that I want to photograph them how they want to be photographed and perceived. I want the people I photograph to have something they can look back on and be proud of or happy with forever; hopefully with more sentimentality and pride than just happy snaps from an event or the selfies they’ve taken on their phones. That’s part of the reason I always shoot film, apart from its artistic advantage in comparison to digital, I think it has more of a timeless sentimentality to it and a different approach than the digital media that floods our lives, one that maybe will stand out from the rest later on.
I wanted to capture whatever they wanted me to capture. This work was coming from a really personal place so in the usual sense it was never intended to communicate anything to those who were not a part of it. Many of the images I’ve taken may never be published.
How do you get people to relax in front of the camera?
I talk to them a lot, probably embarrass myself more than they could embarrass themselves. I tell them what I’m doing, tell them what I’d like them to do, tell them where the light is, what they look like, and talk about totally irrelevant things. I think most of the time people start to get stiff in front of the camera because they just have no idea what you’re seeing or thinking and if you talk about it and fill the silence they start to relax. I ask them if there is anything in particular they want to do or that they think would be cool because if they’re excited about it all they’re going to be more open. If we are somewhere we can put on music I get them to chuck their own stuff on. If people have pets I chuck them in for a photo too, people like that. Really just lots of little things to distract or reassure them. Bad Gal’s was wicked because before meeting them I asked them to pick out an outfit they felt like a ‘Bad Gal’ in so they were all comfortable and happy with how they were looking, I shot them in their own homes, a place that they’re comfortable, which kept things pretty chill.
How long did the series take?
And is it ongoing? I did a lot very quickly over about four to six weeks and then put it on the sideline for a while as I had an exhibition I had to do work for. I definitely feel like it’s going to be ongoing though. There are a lot of Gals who volunteered but I never got to shoot with them. I reckon it might be interesting to go back and shoot the same Gals in a year or two or 10, who knows. I’ll pick it up again in between projects. I feel like I could take it a lot further in the future.
How long have you been taking photos for?
I’ve been taking pictures, whether they were any good or not, for as long as I can remember. However for a more accurate answer, when I was in Year 9 I shot my first roll of B&W 35mm film on an SLR and that’s when I really began to realise how invested I was in photography. There’s this one really bizarre photograph I took during that time of my black cat yawning, cropped close up to her face and all you can see is her white teeth and furry tongue and the rest is just pitch black. I’ve still got it up on my bedroom wall and I look at it every day because I still remember the split second decision I made to hit the shutter and then a week later developing the film and the elation I felt realising that I’d got what seemed to be such an impossible shot so clearly. From that day I was totally gone for it all and I haven’t stopped since.
Analogue or digital?
Analogue or die. I love my old-school cameras, they will forever surpass anything digital could ever offer me. They are timeless, incredible pieces of technology that are truly a dream to use.
Who would you love to photograph?
A year or two ago I was showing my Dad some really cool photographs of Kristen Stewart and he said, “Is she someone you want to photograph one day?” Now I just can’t get the idea out of my head. So for the sake of it, here is me putting that out in the universe. Call me Kristen, I like your attitude.
What was the last image that made you go, “Oh wow”?
Oh wow, I’m not sure. I see images that make my jaw drop online every day. I then screenshot and hoard them in my iPhone camera roll amongst 11,467 other images (I’m not exaggerating). But it’s online so everything is so temporary and replaceable because there is just so much. It’s on your Instagram feed one day and then the next it’s gone. I think if I saw a lot of it in person I’d stand there in the gallery for an hour so I’d remember it forever. I have a book titled Magnum Contact Sheets that I flip through regularly and it never fails to elicit an “oh wow”, although I’m more interested in the images that they didn’t choose as finals than those they did.
Who would you hate to be stuck in a lift with?
I’d hate to be stuck in a lift with Rodney Mullen because he’s my hero and I think he’s the coolest, most talented, creative, and intelligent human being ever. I know I would humiliate myself if I ever met him. He’s one of the most influential skateboarders of all time. Skateboarding to me is the finest physical art form, like dancing with just the drone noise of wheels on concrete, and energy moving through the board like an extension of your body. The perfect combination of maths, science, creativity, and intuition. If I got stuck in a lift with him I’d be trapped and after I inevitably made a total fool of myself by confessing my undying love I wouldn’t be able to escape. Nightmare material.
What were you obsessed with as a teenager?
I was such a ratbag of a teenager, I was obsessed with rebelling in every way possible. I’m secretly still 14 and obsessed with boy bands, skateboarding, and coming-of-age films. I’m also secretly a teenager of the late ’90s (despite not being a teen in the actual ’90s) because all of the above feature in my current VHS collection.
What are you working on?
A collaboration with Flossy (@flosskees, flosskees.com). She’s making some really rad products and I’m going to shoot them, although it’s more than that. I’ve gone down the rabbit hole that is celebrity PR – the idea of creating identities and how brands market products as people, ideas, and lifestyles. I love rebellious subculture, their ‘fuck the norm’ outlook, and the way interviews with musicians/skaters/artists became manifestos for the youth of their time. I’d describe what I’m mulling over as the idea of marketing a product as a documented performance art piece. I’m really excited to dive into the project with her since both of us come from a fine art background with a lot of the same ‘out there’ influences. It’s going to be really cool.
sarahstockman.com.au / @sarahstockman
