Famed photographer William Yang revisits iconic Sydneyphiles exhibition

Photographer William Yang’s breakthrough 1977 exhibition Sydneyphiles is set to be restaged for the first time at the State Library of NSW.

When Sydneyphiles debuted at the Australian Centre for Photography some 30+ years ago, it broke all artistic conventions and launched the self-taught photographer’s 46-year career.

“It was one of the first times Australian gay photos were shown in a gallery,” says Yang.

“You have to remember, this was 1977 and homosexual acts between men were illegal in NSW. The wider community generally disapproved of homosexuality, and some people were against any depiction of gayness, especially in an institution,” he says.  

The prolific photographer and celebrated storyteller made his mark by evocatively capturing real-life interactions in public and private spaces with unflinching candor. 

Whether it was a private party, public gathering, police raid, pop concert, gallery opening, fashion parade or dinner party with friends, Yang was most certainly there, creating the photo stories which would enable him to move from behind the camera and onto the stage to become a renowned performance artist in the 1980s.

“Somehow, I’d stumbled upon a formula – people wanted to see photos of themselves, it didn’t matter if they were in a compromising situation, it was better than being left out,” says Yang.

For the State Library, the exhibition is an opportunity to reassess Yang's work in a new era. 

“It's provided a rare opportunity to reflect on William Yang’s unique participatory (and sometimes voyeuristic) perspective of Sydney at the time, before politics and the AIDS epidemic altered the city’s mood forever,” says State Library curator Margot Riley.

“William (or Willy Young as he was known then) had this knack for training his lens on people, many of whom were friends, who would later become cultural leaders and queer icons, including Brett Whiteley, Jenny Kee, Linda Jackson, David McDiarmid and Peter Tully,” added Riley.

The exhibition not only looks at the heady days of Yang’s early career, but also the aftermath of the show’s success.

Sydneyphiles Reimagined is on display in the State Library’s Amaze Gallery from 11 February to 4 June. You can find out more here.

William Yang will also be performing Gay Sydney: A Memoir at the Seymour Centre from 19 to 23 February.