The Windsor: A Future for the Past

Polixeni Papapetrou

Renowned artist Polixeni Papapetrou will bring the past into the future with her forthcoming exhibition – The Windsor: A Future for the Past - to be held at The Hotel Windsor from 24 April to 23 May.

Polixeni has long been fascinated by history. But how to use the rich patrimony of books, pictures, costumes and buildings to be something beyond the museum, something unique to our time when we see things with new eyes?

Concentrating on one of Melbourne's finest architectural monuments, The Hotel Windsor, Papapetrou has delved into the archive to discover how the grand Victorian edifice looked around the time of Federation, how it formed a backdrop for public ritual and witnessed the growth of Melbourne into the age of the electrical tramway.

Papapetrou has transformed the photographic record, interpreting the lights and darks of the pictures as a scaffold for visual rhapsody. Joining forces with printer Stewart Russell, she recreates the images in silver and gold, on linen and glass revitalizing the scene with a suggestion of a glaze that keys with the glint of livery, polished cutlery, brass trappings and spangling ornaments.

Her works at The Windsor handle old material but they don't look old themselves. The treatment is not nostalgic but more otherworldly, transfigured, extrapolated into a gilded projection. Her project isn't about taking us back to the past but bringing the past into the future.

Hotel director and owner of The Windsor, Adipoetra Halim said he is delighted that Polixeni is bringing life to the hotel's rich archive of images, some of which date back to the hotel's founding years. “Polixeni's photographic narrative and interpretation of our historic landmark is extremely moving. She shows tremendous respect for both past and present and has spent almost one year researching and lovingly restoring our library. We feel extremely honoured to be the focus and exhibiting venue for her work”, he said.

The Windsor continues to actively engage with the Arts community and awards annually its Windsor Art Prize and scholarship. In 2014, it was the host venue for Spring 1883 that attracted more than 5,000 art lovers to the hotel over a three day period. Established in 1883, The Windsor is Australia's oldest Grand hotel and is one of the world's most revered hotels of Victorian architecture.

Polixeni Papapetrou is an Australian photographic artist who explores the relationship between history, contemporary culture and identity. Since 2002 Papapetrou has explored the subject matter of childhood identity, memory and otherness. She has held over 50 solo exhibitions and participated in over 80 group exhibitions in Australia, Asia, Europe and the USA. Surveys of her work were held at the Australian Centre for Photography, Sydney (2011) and Centre for Contemporary Photography, Melbourne (2013). She has participated in major international photographic festivals in Columbia, The Netherlands, Paris, Bratislava, Athens, Seoul and Montreal. Her work appears in over 200 articles, citations and essays. She holds the degrees: PhD, Monash University (2007); MA, RMIT University (1997); LLB/ BA, University of Melbourne (1984).