More than 80 million images are shared on the social network Instagram each day. Of those, some of the best come from photographers in the Northern Territory.
 
This exhibition presents a selection of these extraordinary images from Instagrammers in all corners of the Territory, from the ranges of Central Australia to the northern coastline, each with their own way of experiencing this diverse place. 
 
On these walls you can see moments captured by journalists, lawyers, ice-cream makers, professional photographers, shoemakers, backpackers, mums and mayors. Each has their own set of fans right across the world, followings often formed using #hashtags that connect them to like-minded people who share their passions, whether that’s wildlife, bush foods or anything else that makes Territory life so unique.
 

Territorians and their visitors have been photographing their lives and journeys for nearly 150 years. Many of their images and albums are now kept in our collections here at the library. Today, social media is a new medium for sharing images and stories, a new way of documenting social life and identity from increasingly diverse points of view. This exhibition celebrates that diversity, the thousands of digital images that appear and disappear online, but it also raises the question - how do we preserve these fleeting images for future generations, just as we have in the past? 

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Recognising the rise of Instagram, I curated iNsTagrammers: The best of NT Photography from Instagram for Northern Territory Library. It was its biggest exhibition to date featuring more than 70 images from over 15 contributors.

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Northern Territory Library, Parliament House, Darwin, 30 March - 2 July 2017

Araluen Arts Centre, Mparntwe (Alice Springs), 18 November - 11 March 2018

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Photos (above): @bookhopper, @michaelfranchi, @unseenimages_travel, @damienjryan, @elise_derwin, @kylextaylor, @michaelfranchi, @laurenagnese​

Photos (below): Helen Orr, Caddie Brain