The Longest Night is a photographic exploration of rough sleepers in Melbourne during the longest night of the year in the depths of winter. The series invites us to look closer at the people we pass, the city we inhabit, and the fragile line that separates us from one another.
Joel (47) & Chews (1)
Homelessness in Greater Melbourne affects over 30,000 people across Victoria, with inner-city and western suburbs experiencing some of the highest rates in the state
Raymond (6) & Sharkie (47)
Shot at night on the cold winter solstice beneath the glow of streetlights, convenience stores, bottle shops and all-night businesses, The Longest Night examines the often-overlooked spaces where people seek refuge after dark. These are not the places we imagine as homes, yet for many they become temporary bedrooms, shelters and sanctuaries.
Francis (63)
At its heart, the series asks viewers to confront an uncomfortable reality: that the distance between security and hardship is often far smaller than we imagine. For many, sleeping rough is not the result of a single choice, but a chain of circumstances that could happen to almost anyone.
Hillary (42)
Around 80 to 130 people are typically identified as sleeping rough in the CBD on any given night.
Francis (63)
Sharkie (47)
The work deliberately contrasts the vulnerability of sleeping rough with the strange familiarity of the urban environments that surround it. Fluorescent-lit Seven Elevens, vacant laneways, ATM alcoves and shopfronts become unexpected stages where stories of hardship unfold in plain sight.
Shaun (58)
The primary drivers of homelessness in the region are housing crises/shortages, financial difficulties, and family and domestic violence.
