Locked Inside is a unique touring exhibition, the scale of which has a profound impact on its audiences, and gives genuine insight into the plight of refugees in Australian detention centres.

In a series of 8 huge "padlocks" (they stand as tall as a person), Ibtihal Samarayi uses images of detention and freedom, ID cards, real letters from detainees, children and family photographs, media coverage of detainees and protesters, images of adults and children waiting for a better life and a dove in a cage. An expert with a jig saw and cordless drill, Samarayi manufactured the padlocks herself and exhibits them in a circle with a huge key hanging from the ceiling that no-one can reach; a symbolic comment on the plight of the refugees.

"The detainees experiences need to be communicated to the public and I feel a deep responsibility as an Iraqi refugee to support them. My own work comes from my experiences as an Iraqi artist who lived in refugee camps in Iran and Turkey before gaining a permanent visa in Australia, and thus did not experience detention in Australia."

The installation consists of eight padlocks made of wood and foam, approximately 1.6 meters in height and one meter in width. The padlocks are placed in a circle with the key holes each with an eye inside looking out, facing into the circle. From the ceiling above the circle, hangs a large key that could open the padlocks, but is strategically placed just out of reach. The key is a digitally manipulated image. On the other side of the padlocks, facing outward, are representations of the fears and hopes of the detainees – barbed wire, beaches, family reunions, the horrors of war. On the adjoining walls hang the artworks of the asylum seeker artists and the children.

The tour of Locked Inside is supported by: