Ulysses’ Gaze, view to Lalgambuk (Mt Franklin), 2025

From an immersive series of photography, “The Trees endure, the land has memory”, created in DjaDja Wurrung country, Hepburn Regional Park & the Wombat State Forest. 2021 – Present. A series emerging out of the global pandemic, a study of place. Through daily wanderings in the forests and waterways of Hepburn & Daylesford, metaphors were revealed, to the many themes of struggle, survival & reinvention, so vivid in art history, so present with the backdrop surrounding our consciousness at the time. There are contrasting sentiments; from the claustrophobic perception of restriction post pandemic to the excitement & liberation of finally being “En Plein Air”. The series moves beyond historical documentation, offering an intimate & painterly exploration of personal connection and resilience, which blurs the boundaries of mediums of visual expression. There is a noticeable scarcity of human presence in this series, focusing solely on the land’s narrative – the sun rising each day and lifting the landscape from its darkness. At times the camera offers constricted perspectives or “windows” into the forest, the penultimate image delivers a final sense of closure & reconnecting with an infinite landscape. Deeper ancestral footprints to this region were uncovered during this project, evoking an intangible sense of being “exactly where I need to be”. The notion of “wandering” and “homecoming” resonating. Through the series I begin to reveal the enduring connection to “place,” a concept that delves into the spiritual and historical ties that bind us to the land

David Rosendale is a Photographic artist based in Hepburn Springs Victoria.
Compelled to document the world around him & especially the landscape, his passion for the medium has continued through a lifelong dedication to craft. His work has been trusted by major domestic & international brands commercially. In recent times, his contemporary depictions of the Australian Landscape have attracted keen interest from collectors & private homes. Finalist in the National Photographic Portrait Prize 2015, Jury Top 5 in the International Photography Awards 2024 & Top 5 Highly Commended in the Lethbridge Landscape Prize 2025. David’s artwork brings an attention to detail, forged in analog process & a poetic connection to his subjects, that deliver immersive & tangible studies of the landscape, popular culture & world inhabited.