Brotherhood
Across about five years, I’ve photographed young people at Coogee Jetty south of Perth – one of my favourite places to take pictures.
There’s something really wonderful about watching young people jump, swim, dare one another and just play; no particular purpose, no performance for an online audience, just the pleasure of being together.
Sociologists call places that foster informal social connection ‘third places’ and in a world increasingly lived through screens, these shared physical spaces matter more than ever.
The need for belonging is real and online networks like the ‘manosphere’ exploit that need, promoting misogyny and damaging ideas about masculinity. Journalist Marc Fennell explores this in the new Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) series The State of Man.
We need more places where young people can find friendship, confidence and connection in the real world.
Places to play.
Places to belong.
View the Brotherhood reel here.
