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Born in Derby, the west Kimberley regional centre in Western Australia, in 1952, Joel Smoker has been taking photographs since primary school at Halls Creek. Starting with a Box Brownie camera he graduated to a Kodak camera that could shoot colour as well as black and white. He still has photographs in his collection from travels around the Kimberley as a boy.

In 1983 Joel took up a position as an Arts Advisory Teacher with the Education Department, based at the Kimberley District Education Office in Kununurra in the east Kimberley. The job was for three years and Joel took his camera with him wherever he went. The result is a collection of images that document the landscape and those times. The Kimberley Series book is a selection of forty photographs from this collection.

The Kimberley Series of photographs were first exhibited in 1987 at Birrukmarri Gallery in Fremantle in conjunction with an exhibition of art by artists from the Waringarri Aboriginal Arts Centre in Kununurra. The photographs have since been exhibited at Hogarth Galleries in Sydney in 1992 and numerous other exhibitions. They represent the vision of a native son.

The artist’s monograph, The Kimberley Series was launched by respected Australian landscape photographer, Richard Woldendorp at the Gallery at Ellenbrook House, 34 Main Street, Ellenbrook, on Sunday the 29th of March, 2009. 

The Kimberley Series of posters, photographic prints and A2 prints are also available.