Perth Voice Interactive

NORTH PERTH photographer Brad Serls’ last exhibition Houses of 6006 explored the tiny details and hidden places often ignored in the homes of his suburb’s well-trodden streets.

For his new collection, Lurking, the 35-year-old has taken his passion for detail to the “weird little places” in some of Europe’s greatest cities.

From the tallest point in Paris some photographers might be tempted to snap a panoramic view of the skyline, but Serls was fascinated by the textures of the roofs below.

“I was a lot more attuned to detail… all I wanted to do was take pictures of the rooftops.”

Likewise, Dubrovnik in Croatia was full of secrets for a patient photographer: Hotel Belvedere was built as a five-star luxury hotel but abandoned when Serbs attacked in 1991.

As he watched, he spotted stray cats creeping across the rocky surface of broken walls, new denizens who had moved in after refugees who had sheltered there had long moved out. Someone had even left behind a bag of cat food for visitors to scatter among the strays.

Hungary’s Budapest proved rich hunting grounds for a texture-obsessive: “Nothing’s been fixed up, no building’s had plaster replaced,” he says, and it sometimes reminded him of the North Perth cottages left to fall to ruin while the owner prepared to demolish.

Lurking: An Exhibition by Brad Serls is at the William Street Bird until July 26. Or see bradsphotog on instragram.

by DAVID BELL