Martin Fox

In the ’70s and ’80s, photographer William Yang captured Sydney’s emerging artistic, literary, theatrical and queer circles; as well as his friendships with artists, writers and fashion designers such as Brett Whiteley, Patrick White, Linda Jackson and Jenny Kee. With myriad images and his trademark candid narration, Yang leads us though this beguilingly decadent and creative era.

Photographer William Yang came out in Sydney in the early 70s, a period of great social change. "I never consciously came out as a gay man, I was swept out by events at the time." He has seen the formation of a gay activist culture in the 70s, the commercialization of the gay scene in the 80s, and lived through the devastating effects of AIDS in the early 90s. With myriad images and his trademark candid narration, Yang leads us though this beguiling era of sexual discovery, politics, love and loss.

Renowned Australian artist William Yang traces the labyrinthine web of his family history in this adaptation of his iconic live performance piece. William was born and raised in North Queensland, his grandparents having migrated from China to the Top End during the 1880s gold rush. Yet it was not until mid-life that he claimed his Chinese heritage, which had hitherto been lost to him by his complete assimilation into the Australian way of life. William's transatlantic exploration of his genealogy unites him with scores of relatives from all walks of life, some rich, but most ordinary folk with menial jobs, and most cannot speak a word of Chinese. A visual feast, Blood Links examines how the Chinese diaspora establish roots in foreign soil, and how over the generations, through intermarriage, blood is mixed; yet the intricate bonds of family remain.

In the ’70s and ’80s, photographer William Yang captured Sydney’s emerging artistic, literary, theatrical and queer circles; as well as his friendships with artists, writers and fashion designers such as Brett Whiteley, Patrick White, Linda Jackson and Jenny Kee. With myriad images and his trademark candid narration, Yang leads us though this beguilingly decadent and creative era.

Photographer William Yang came out in Sydney in the early 70s, a period of great social change. "I never consciously came out as a gay man, I was swept out by events at the time." He has seen the formation of a gay activist culture in the 70s, the commercialization of the gay scene in the 80s, and lived through the devastating effects of AIDS in the early 90s. With myriad images and his trademark candid narration, Yang leads us though this beguiling era of sexual discovery, politics, love and loss.

Renowned Australian artist William Yang traces the labyrinthine web of his family history in this adaptation of his iconic live performance piece. William was born and raised in North Queensland, his grandparents having migrated from China to the Top End during the 1880s gold rush. Yet it was not until mid-life that he claimed his Chinese heritage, which had hitherto been lost to him by his complete assimilation into the Australian way of life. William's transatlantic exploration of his genealogy unites him with scores of relatives from all walks of life, some rich, but most ordinary folk with menial jobs, and most cannot speak a word of Chinese. A visual feast, Blood Links examines how the Chinese diaspora establish roots in foreign soil, and how over the generations, through intermarriage, blood is mixed; yet the intricate bonds of family remain.