A Melbourne photographer has admitted being an "abuser" after over 50 accusations of sexual misconduct were made about him over the last few days.
The man has worked with some of the Australian music scenes top artists including Kate Miller-Heidke and Odette.
In a lengthy post on Medium, under the username @re._stacks, he addressed the allegations saying, “I abused my power”, and “displayed pure misogyny” -- admitting people had warned him of his behaviour in the past. He has since deleted his Instagram account.
In the post, he admits to pushing for nudity in shoots, sharing private photos, exposing his penis without consent, and manipulating situations with women.
He also addressed the use of a pseudonym on social media, saying, “I created my work under re._stacks and the reason why I did that is because I was once before called out for behaviour that was not okay, I told myself they were just sensitive and that I’ll be right and that my ways aren’t that bad and made a slight change that did nothing. I was absolutely wrong. I am an abuser.”
He said, “While I like to keep some anonymity for the sake of my own physical well being I want it again to be clear that if the things I have done result in me having to apologise to people or many people in even a courtroom, or result in me having to face a charge, I will face that.”
The collection of stories of the alleged abuse came from musician Jaguar Jonze who shared 59 accusations of sexual misconduct over Instagram. The revelations were crafted in notepad-like images with accounts of experiences women allege happened during their time with the photographer.
Jonze began collecting the stories three days ago, at first there were only three people detailing accounts of abuse.
“In the last few days, I’ve been hearing so many stories about a particular male photographer who works in the industry,” she wrote on Instagram.
The avalanche of stories grew in the following days with Jonze amassing over 50 different accounts about alleged experiences with the photographer. In his post, he revealed he will be leaving photography, and the community he was a part of.
"It wasn't up to the other person to stop me from talking about sex, or my penis. Or to have them stop me from showing them my penis in any way shape or form," he said in his post on Medium.
Jonze, who shared the stories on her Instagram, was prompted to provide support to victims because of her own previous experiences of sexualised violence.
"When I was sexually assaulted last year by two producers, I felt alone, ashamed and didn't know what to do, or where to go," she wrote on Instagram.
"I am just writing this to say, that if you have been affected by a similar story and need a safe space to land in this sometimes terrifying industry - please reach out to me.
"I don't want this pattern to continue and for it to happen to anyone else."
If this story raised issues for you, help is available. Contact a crisis support service below.
- Lifeline 13 11 14 www.lifeline.org.au
- beyondblue 1300 224 636 www.beyondblue.org.au
- 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.org.au
- No to Violence on 1300 766 491, or visit ntv.org.au
- Mensline on 1300 789 978 or mensline.org.au
- In an emergency, call 000.
