Mardi Gras memories for sale

Since 1986 Elaine Pelot-Syron -” photographer and proud mother of four gay children -” has been documenting Mardi Gras, and now her extensive collection of an estimated 10,000 photos is up for sale.
The collection, which features behind-the-scenes pictures from the Mardi Gras warehouse and memorable parade moments as well as other historic events from Sydney’s gay past will be sold as a complete collection, with a condition placed on the sale that the images remain accessible to the community.
The collection tells a story unique to Sydney and its gay culture, illustrating how our past came to be the present and can be a torch for the future, Pelot-Syron explained.
But I think my collection is also important because it tells of my personal struggle to understand what was going on with my kids and trying to find out more about the discrimination against my kids which made me really angry.
I don’t think I approached taking these photos as an artist. I wanted to document a movement and I felt strongly that if my pictures could be seen then they could change people’s minds.
For many years they were seen in the display windows of Pelot-Syron’s photography shops in Darlinghurst, Paddington and Bondi Junction, where people could pick up memento prints for 50 cents a shot.
I knew a lot of people because of my kids, so when I started taking the images I put them in my shop in a display. I was trying to give the community access that they had not had before and then later everyone else started copying me, she recalled.
She added that at times the responses were not so complimentary, including incidents where excrement was smeared on her shop windows.
Looking back on her work, Pelot-Syron is proud and fond of many of the memories associated, including the images of her children in the parade as well as a few favourite shots of Hillari, a drag queen who would take time out from partying to help fellow queens with make-up touch-ups.
But now the time has come to find a buyer for the collection as a whole, which is expected to sell for between $80,000 -” $100,000.

info: For more information on the collection or to arrange a viewing call Elaine on 0411 725 981.
Photos: Mardi Gras images by Elaine Pelot-Syron now for sale.