Women's Phyre retreat in Byron hinterland
Since the discovery of fire humans have been enchanted with its flames. Fire has been used in ritual, believed to have cleansing and purifying powers. It is seen in mythology as a symbol of strength rebirth and resilience - a phoenix rising from the ashes. It has been the light that drew people together to sit around campfires and share food, stories and knowledge.
Although in our modern lives we tend to have less and less exposure to the primal flames. We increasingly find ourselves inside, our faces instead lit by our screens and digital devices. Fire has become something powerful and destructive to be avoided and even feared.
At the time of writing this post, Australia is burning. Our beautiful country and its extensive forests and bushlands have been ablaze for weeks. Lives have been lost, homes have been destroyed, wildlife populations have been devastated. It's a difficult time for Australians, and wake up call to remind us that things are out of balance in our natural world around us.
But amidst all this chaos, I was given the opportunity to explore my relationship to fire when I was invited to photograph an incredible group of women at the Women’s Phyre Retreat, held in Byron Bay’s Hinterlands.
The retreat organisers Bella and Hailey are talented fire dancers, who have been performing and teaching the art of fire dance as a means of connecting with others and form of self expression. The unfortunate timing of the outbreak of bushfires caused these passionate women to find themselves dancing amongst the bushfires, in a valley filled with red, gray and gold haze.
Originally planned as a fire dancing retreat the organisers Hailey and Bella, made the decision not to light up in honour and respect of what the surrounding land was experiencing. Instead they danced with the wind blowing through orange silk fans, called in the element of water and prayed for rain. During the retreat, the women learned about herbal remedies, bathed in crystal bowl sound healing, nourished themselves with plant based feasts, did yoga, feminine movement sessions, infrared saunas and swam under the red moonlight in a glistening lake.
In the height of the fear and anxiety caused by the raging fires, I was able to find beauty and solace by witnessing and photographing how this intense contact with the elements moved, transformed and connected this amazing sisterhood of women to the land and each other.
Here is a collection of my favorite images from the retreat… You can sense in the images the ethereal otherworldly and almost apocalyptic feel that was drifting through the air as the fires ate their way through the hills above.
Retreat @phyreretreats
Food @freestateliving
Superfoods @arcanabotanics and @jiva_chi
Space @byron.hinterland.accommodation
*Hailey and Bella have contributed a portion of their profits to @wireswildliferescue who are working tirelessly to rescue animals effected by the fire. Their next Phyre retreate will take place in Bali in 2020. To find out more visit: http://bellafuego.com/womens-phyre-retreat/