Projects & Collaborations
Between 2023 and 2026 I have gained an HNC, HND and BA in photography. It's been one of the biggest things I've ever done and I've enjoyed it. I've grown as a photographer and as a human.
I've worked collaboratively with people on their own projects, documenting the R&D stage through to the final outcome. I hope the time spent in education will give me more opportunities to work in the community, with arts and health and continue to grow my events work.
Click through for full images
Pinhole study for 3rd year BA
I wanted to experiment with different techniques and I found digital pinhole effective in summarising how it feels during a panic attack when I'm out of the house. These are some of the test shots for the final project. It's been a long and very detailed process and has evolved through many iterations over six months.
BEAST
BA first year project. I chose to document my local butchers, BEAST, in Bristol. It was a brilliant few months during which time I created a lot of images and made good friends with the team. The photographs were collected in a book. The covers were made from laser cut wood, I used butchers paper inside to compliment the semi gloss paper and stitched it all together using coptic stitching. The book is in the shop and has many very nice reviews.
WARNING: There's obviously a lot of meaty photos inside this book.
Location Documentary project for HNC
For this project I started out with an idea to use Bristol's bomb maps at the archive to dictate where I'd be taking the photos. It evolved over time, research and several hours among dusty and fascinating artefacts into a study of old and new buildings sitting side by side. This is largely as a result of the devastation during The Blitz in WW2 and new town planning post war.
Film & Dark room project for HNC
My first go at processing film and developing in a dark room. I used my Mum's old Olympus OM 30 and had some mixed results. It was loads of fun though and I hope to try my hand at more in the future.
Conceptual Project for HND
SENSITIVE CONTENT
During this project for Conceptual Photography, what started out as abstract self portraits turned into a project about my Dad. He died when I was 8 years old in a drowning accident. Contained within this set are some pages from his recently rediscovered coroner's report and mention of suicide in a letter to me from a friend in the 90s. There are also a couple of pages made from his time in advertising in the 60's and early 70's typed on onion skin paper. I feel all these elements have a great deal to do with who I am.
Not The Same Poet But Still An Artist - Hazel Hammond
Collaborative project with Hazel Hammond - poet, Liz Clarke - facilitator and creative lead and Tom Stubbs - film maker. Hazel made these hats to explore and explain what it's like to still be a poet after a stroke that left her with aphasia. These were displayed at The Arnolfini as part of a wider exhibition and a workshop showing the film.
TOM MARSHMAN - UNIVERSITY OF BRISTOL THEATRE COLLECTION
RESEARCH FOR A PIECE ABOUT OLIVER MESSEL
Tom Marshman is an artist who delves into archives and history for his performance pieces. In this instance he wanted me to capture a picture of him mimicking a well known shot of Oliver Messel with two sparklers. Messel (b.1904, d.1978) was a costume and set designer, from a family of wealth and connections. He was a gay man at a time when it was a criminal offence. I took photos of Tom researching various papers and photographs at the University Of Bristol Archive Theatre Collection and the following show which took place at Ashton Court Manor.
PATHWAYS
A fascination with desire paths led me to make a map. I used an old ordnance survey map of my local area as a backdrop and linked up various desire paths around Bristol. This was one of five books I made for the final project of my BA.
THE BENCH
I noticed one day a man lying on a bench; shirt off, his lovely large round belly soaking up the sunbeams. Beguiled by the joyous nature of his repose, I snapped a quick pic on my phone and thus began my obsession. Others have photographed it as part of their work. Upon discovery it elevated this humble bench to some kind of urban throne.
It's become an odyssey of sorts, a pilgrimage. It grounds me. I view it as a friend. I relate to it in some way and philosophise on our relationship. I've never once sat on the bench, only gazed upon it from the path below.
The weather shifts, the grounds alter, the sky changes, but the bench remains a steadfast beacon in an otherwise volatile and unsure world.
LOOKING
In this book I wanted to show how I collect images in the same way I hoard objects. I travel around the city by bike and due to agoraphobia I'm unable to easily go beyond those boundaries. I see humour and pathos in these little scenes. Photography has been hugely important in getting me out and about; it gives me purpose and structure.
TREMBLE
The anatomy of a panic attack. I used digital pinhole photography with three holes to create a dreamy, textured and unsure set of images. The variety in the test shots gave way to a theme of trees for the final piece. People interpret it in many ways; I don't want to impose my exact ideas. I enjoyed this process; a big departure from my usual style of work, it gave me a lot of freedom and playfulness.
AETHER
I hadn't quite realised the scale of my love of clouds until I started this book. I wanted to use photos from my phone as well as the ones taken with my Nikon. Working on the theory that the best camera is the one you have on you, it seemed fitting to me to create a mix of images. The phone does things in a magic way sometimes, such is the technology. How I approach the day either with or without the big camera alters the way in which I engage and notice things.
