What might you find behind a tiny door?
In Afterglow, Brisbane-based photographic artist Mai Naito fills the gallery walls at fortyfivedownstairs with preloved dollhouse doors and windows. Peer through each opening to discover an impressionistic photographic landscape shaped by her childhood memories of exploring nature and the worlds she imagined along the way.
Collected from across Australia, the miniatures carry traces of the people who made, arranged and cared for them. Some came with stories. One window belonged to a miniature scene its maker imagined and built as a child, then chose to pass on years later. Others arrived with their histories unknown, leaving room to imagine the small worlds they once belonged to.
The title Afterglow speaks to the warmth that remains in these objects. By bringing the miniatures together in one space and giving them a new life, the artist hopes to honour their histories and let some of the affection and wonder they once held glow quietly again.
The installation invites you to slow down, lean closer and let your curiosity guide you from one miniature to the next. In the details you discover, you might find a moment of childlike wonder and a little room to imagine again.
Afterglow runs from 19 to 30 January 2027.
Visiting hours
Tuesday-Friday, 12 pm to 7 pm
Saturday, 12 pm to 4 pm
Venue
Small Gallery, fortyfivedownstairs
45 Flinders Lane, Melbourne
