Seascapes Triptych

My relationship to the forest landscapes of Dorset and Hampshire in southern England, near my home, is central to my photographic practice.

I am interested in how we understand, think about and experience landscapes that we feel particular connections with, which are in turn shaped by cultural perceptions which come to us through the coloured prisms of storytelling and mythology, literature, fine art, and contemporary narratives of climate change.

In the Seascapes Triptych light from the surface of the sea partially obscures the heathland and trees beyond. This light is an ingress, overlaying the trees and representing the potentially destructive human impacts of climate change, rising sea levels, pollution, tourism, fires – the list goes on. The beguiling sparkles hint at the insidious nature of these pressures and their slow obscuring and damaging of the natural world. This triptych reflects a sense of deep concern about the urgencies of the climate crisis and yet I hold a strong and enduring hope for the future and the changes we must strive for.

Triptych 1 is an Ash, a species threatened by ash dieback – a fungal infection that is expected to kill up to 80% of ash trees across the UK, irreversibly changing the landscape and posing a threat to species dependent on ash trees.

Triptych 2 is a pair of Scots pines, a truly native pine of the UK, this pioneer species thrives on heathland in the Purbeck District, near my home in Dorset. Scots pine provide habitat for rare wildlife, including Ospreys which have recently been reintroduced to the area.

Triptych 3 is a mature birch tree, another pioneer species which thrives on the acidic and impoverished, sandy heathland soil of the south Purbeck heathlands in Dorset. Over time, birch improves the soil conditions, enabling the development of other species on sites dominated by dwarf shrub heath. This process brings widespread benefits to wildlife and enriches the diversity of insect fauna.