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The Power of Choice comes to Perth to mark five years of voluntary assisted dying in WA

Go Gentle Australia

Key Facts:

Photographic exhibition by Julian Kingma documents Australia’s voluntary assisted dying (VAD) laws 

Project runs from 13 June to 11 July to coincide with the fifth anniversary of end-of-life choice in Western Australia.

The Power of Choice asks us to reflect on dignity, autonomy and what it means to have a good death.

Exhibition details

Julian Kingma: The Power of Choice
Dates: 13 June – 11 July 2026
Venue: Holmes à Court Gallery @ no.10
10 Douglas Street, West Perth WA 6005
Gallery hours: Wednesday–Friday, 11.00am–5.00pm; Saturday, 12.00pm–4.00pm
Closed public holidays.

A powerful photographic exhibition documenting the human stories behind Australia’s voluntary assisted dying (VAD) laws will open in Perth this week, ahead of the fifth anniversary of end-of-life choice in Western Australia.

Julian Kingma: The Power of Choice will be shown at Holmes à Court Gallery @ no.10 in West Perth from 13 June to 11 July 2026.

For two years, acclaimed portrait photographer Julian Kingma travelled the country documenting Australians who choose VAD, as well as the families and health professionals who support them on their final journey.

The resulting exhibition, based on the Walkley Award-winning book of the same name, captures deeply personal stories of hope, struggle, courage and acceptance.

Western Australia was the second state to pass a VAD law in December 2019. Eligible terminally ill people have accessed the end-of-life choice since 2 July 2021.

Kingma said the time spent capturing the exhibition images was transformational.  “It has been an eye-opening and humbling experience. Nothing prepared me for the candour, love and absolute trust the people in these images have given a stranger with a camera.” 

 

Go Gentle Australia CEO Dr Linda Swan said the exhibition offered a rare and moving insight into what VAD means for terminally ill people and their loved ones.  “Five years on from the introduction of voluntary assisted dying in Western Australia, this exhibition is a timely reminder of the profound difference these laws have made.

 

“Julian Kingma’s images show the human face of voluntary assisted dying. They reveal people making deeply considered choices at the end of life, and the families and clinicians who walk alongside them with compassion and care,” Dr Swan said.

 

“At its heart, The Power of Choice asks us to reflect on dignity, autonomy and what it means to have a good death.”

 

Dr Swan said that while Western Australia had led the nation in providing terminally ill people with access to voluntary assisted dying, barriers remained.

“Some people still face unacceptable obstacles when trying to access this compassionate end-of-life choice,” Dr Swan said.

“These include obstruction by individuals and institutions, the Commonwealth ban on the use of telehealth in VAD, and the ongoing difficulty some people have in finding trained doctors.

“We should be focused not only on recognising the impact of these laws, but on making sure every eligible person can access them safely, fairly and without unnecessary delay.”

 

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About Julian Kingma

Julian is one of the country’s most accomplished portrait photographers. His work is regularly exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra, where many of his portraits are held in the permanent collection.

 

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Public events

The Perth exhibition will be accompanied by two public events exploring lived experience and clinical perspectives on VAD:

• Voices in Voluntary Assisted Dying, Thursday 18 June, 10.00am – 11.30am

• Clinician Voices in Voluntary Assisted Dying, Wednesday 24 June, 5.30pm – 7.00pm

Contact details:

[email protected] 
0426 283 865