Abbey Road, Studio 3
It’s been months since my post. I didn’t even mention the two exhibitions I contributed to before lockdown occurred. They’re a hazy memory now. They were Postcards from Great Britain at Hotel Lion d’Or, Haarlem, Netherlands and the International Winter Exhibition at The Glasgow Gallery of Photography. I had other plans too but, ah, nevermind those.
I started drafting this post at the beginning of May (it’s now almost mid-June). I don’t know what I was going to write about then. The subsequent days all merge into one. Fuzzy, sun and rain soaked, slow, repetitive days. With any spare moment I’ve been growing things with success (plant and seed swapping too) and fixing up gaping wounds that some lowlife scaffolder and builder left behind in the winter. Ever since the season popped into life, I’ve been reminded of what a much wiser woman told me recently; May always feels busy because nature goes wild.
I immersed myself in it when having to quarantine for a couple of weeks. I worked on lumens, cyanotypes and installed solargraphs all with a focus on the natural world. As soon as I could go on daily sanctioned walks I took my camera out and about, aimlessly looking for nothing. The deeper joy came in listening to birds and the silence. When it reopened I started walking around my local cemetery again, marvelling at the cow parsley overgrowth. The world has changed. Even on the darkest days, there is a hint of promise for what might happen.
Here’s a few pictures from the last 80 days.
Thanks to the magnificant Lomography for this lovely piece.
‘Inspired by the freedom of larges places in London, Laura Ward seeks for peace and serenity in small things. For her, photographing in film has the power of slowing people down and make them consider wisely each frame to be portrayed.’
The scaling back that I’d intended for 2018 finally took place in 2019. It’s by far the most important and polarising year for me personally.
I gained a couple of interesting clients that I’m really pleased to be working with. I spent more of my free time up north in Scotland and Yorkshire photographing glass houses and coast lines. For the first time in what feels like a decade I’ve been able to stop the ‘monkey brain’ noise in my head and live at a different pace, allowing me to look more objectively at what I want to do with my creative output.
I’ve been looking back at my favourite pictures since 2009. 10 years ago I was fully immersed in Flickr, but this year I’ve surrended by Pro account. It’s sad to think the site may not survive.
These photographs are some of my favourites taken with Olympus Trip 35, Canon AE-1, Konica C35 and a Canon 6D.
I feel open to new projects, but I just don’t know what all of them are yet.
Go here for 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009.
For two months I’ve been spending hours pushing my daughter around West Norwood Cemetery as she sleeps. Wintery walks in every weather are the best.
One week can change your life, your outlook, the way that you feel and the way that you look. I’ll be feeling this moment for years to come. For now I’ll call it Roof in the Rosemary.
