aughtonphotography.com

‘Fourteen’ is a personal project exploring the genetic disorder Scoliosis and what Emma Aughton and her family experienced. This body of work focuses on the operations Emma and her sister had as teenagers, how that has affected their family, their relationships with their bodies and their feelings towards their experiences. Using still life, portraiture and archived images Emma displays her experience as a therapeutic body of work to inspire body positivity and hope for others suffering from this condition.

@natalieayres.photo

‘Veiled Surroundings’ is a surrealist still life project that focuses on using known surrealist methods in order to use the unconscious mind to create work. The intent behind the images is to allow the audience to create a narrative using their conscious mind and imagination, which are key aspects when looking at surrealist work. Each image is produced using surrealist processes, an example being the surrealist automatism method which allows the photographer to create work without conscious thought, using the objects around her at random to produce a final product. This allows the images shown to hold ambiguity, giving the audience the ability to connect with certain objects and colours to create a narrative and an immersive personal experience with the photographs. The photographer takes imagery from looking at the aesthetics of romanticism, focusing on natural motifs and prioritising atmosphere and emotion instead of accurate depictions of reality. Each image ranges in terms of colours, objects and haziness.

@hollyjadebate / hollyjadebate.wixsite.com

 ‘The Salon’ is a contemporary feminist exploration into modern-day concepts of beauty and how they are affected by media and advertising’s conservative, idealistic representations of women. It articulates the artificial value of marketed manufactured beauty – which is predominantly marketed towards young women – and presents the idea of self-fashioning as an alien concept. The project features a variety of still life, self-portraiture, and collaboration with a model who has recently undergone cosmetic surgery. Holly approaches the subject matter with a considered female gaze to counteract the normalised ‘male gaze’ behaviour of looking at women. Through taking the self-portraits, Holly uses herself as a prop, removed from the patriarchal gaze, to articulate prevalent social and patriarchal pressures in her own life. She pushes the sculptural qualities of beauty-related still-life, using surreal retouching methods and staged studio environments to create a clinical alternate reality. The images communicate the disturbed, synthetic perfection of current beauty standards and contrast more common traditional images of women, as the female body is used practically, as opposed to being showcased in a sexualised light.

isabelsuqi.wixsite.com / @isabel_suqi

Repurposing her personal collection of photographically recorded memories and vernacular phone footage, Isabel Su Qi forms new connections from her experiences and observations of friendship, youth culture and the environment. This re-contextualising of memories is typical of her conceptual work, while her professional focus is performance and event photography. Esho Funi makes suggestions about our relationship with the natural/man-made environment. The mind is shaped by the contemporary world, but initially, the mind’s structure was formed in a natural environment. Disconnection and disharmony from nature is reflected in the project’s ebbs and flows, while the meditative visuals prompt gratuitous introspection regarding relationships with one another, and humanity’s innate connection with our environment. It is important to expand and remedy our emotional connection with nature. As the Buddhist concept of Esho Funi suggests, our inner life and exterior world are connected, inseparable. We are what we attract in the world, including work, home, family and friends. Interpreting this personal archive evaluates the in-depth account of one person’s experience of the world, a microscopic cross-section of society. Where is society leading us? What impact do our actions, the way we currently live our lives, have?

@ambermaephoto

‘Restricted’ is an at home fashion photography project which focuses on the relationship between a person and their clothes. This body of work investigates how these two elements react with and against each other. The work contains images which are both abstract and simple, to emphasise the details in the clothes and expression in the skin. The work has been approached in multiple ways to create varying relationships between the body and the clothing. This project aims to explore these multiple methods of approach towards the body as a way for the photographer to find herself within the images.

‘Inversion’ is a project that details a personal view of the recent Covid-19 outbreak. Visual references and different mediums of post production are used to communicate the delicate relationships between man, nature and architecture within this time. The dark formal tones and constant use of inverted images communicate an apocalyptic and upside down world where the norms of everyday life have gone and has left us with whole cities turned into ghost towns. However, the subjects within the photographs seem almost content with this world and through the use of flowers a sense of optimism pervades. The use of one model throughout the project acts to communicate a singular view of the work, while the use of architecture helps to suggest the stories of thousands of people who have been affected.

@sophieburlisonphoto

‘Naturalis’ is a whimsical, dreamy exploration of nature through editorial fashion and beauty photography. ‘Naturalis’ stems from the Latin word meaning nature, relating to the study and naming of flowers. The work has been formed into a publication in collaboration with Millie Davis featuring illustrations from Luci Pina. The body of work is inspired by the colour palettes, shapes and movements of flowers. The photographer takes an experimental approach by shooting through translucent objects and material, to create a dreamy aesthetic. The direction of the models was also experimental, encouraging them to move with the props and create shapes that complemented and mimicked the forms of the flowers. The makeup, styling and colour palette of each shoot was inspired by each flower, and were grounded in earthy tones, with accents of brighter colour. A mixture of bold and neutral colour palettes are used throughout. The aim of this project is to capture the audience with ethereal images celebrating both the beauty of nature and women.

@hkiu.c / hokiuchung.wixsite.com

The Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill Movement is about the public in Hong Kong trying to express their feelings on how dissatisfied they are about statements the Chief Executive of Hong Kong made during the start of the 2019 Hong Kong Extradition Bill. Actions of the movement include demonstrators starting lots of different activities to show the world what they are facing now in Hong Kong and also what they would like to change in the future. These activities included processions, rallies, meditations, singing, shouting, setting up a Lennon Wall, uncooperative movement and strikes which are happening around Hong Kong to encourage the demonstrators themselves and to let the people in the community and foreigners know what is happening in Hong Kong.

@megrcx

Currently exploring the realms of phototherapy, Meg Clark uses the camera as a tool to heal. They investigate how the use of visual work can help release suppressed feelings and emotions through the act of visual work rather than words. Their work is more about the process rather than the final outcome itself. It is about spending quality one-to-one time, learning things about themselves and their past by performing for themselves. It’s a way to interact with the past while at the same creating a visual diary one can look back on and analyse.

@dan.commons13

Seeing and looking have developed as human evolutionary traits. In the act of photography, the camera functions as a mediator between a person and the world, but what a person chooses to photograph lies deep within, a part of other mechanisms of human nature which are intangible. ‘Projections’ explores the funnelling of this intangibility, and related psychology, through the lens which is inevitably charged on to a resulting image. In this way we can read images as windows into the photographer’s interior world, the culture they are a part of and the perception of their lived experience. The absence of a specific context or strict narrative allows the interpretation process to be freely associated with the psychology of the viewer, echoing the initial moment the photograph was taken.

jackcunninghm.com / @jackcunninghm

‘Love Letter’ is an atmospheric project born from self-reflection and understanding. Throughout his photographic work Cunningham aspires to a beautiful consideration of the world around him. The photographs were created hesitantly through a time of universal bewilderment within society and for the photographer personally – who features collectively with his close friends in the visual work. His hazy self-portraits stand alongside his compassionate view of objects and friends alike. A selection of photographs that are a creation made in the comfort of home or with the help of technology express that there is nothing wrong with creating art simply for one’s own personal gratification and enjoyment. Combining work created pre-Covid-19 and work made while in self-isolation, this project presents Cunningham’s current personal perspective in what is ultimately, a time-capsule love letter to himself.

@thehappysnappy

“We are the underground drag collective of Leeds. We appreciate, we accept and we love any form of performance art.” ‘Age of THE : Underground’ is a social documentary project following the performances of queer performance art collective ‘Age of THE’ and the relationship the photographer has developed with the individuals involved. Each performance contains a piece of the artist’s personality, a huge amount of emotion and vulnerability. Often, these performances tackle personal issues, including gender dysphoria, body dysmorphia and feelings surrounding sex and sexuality. This project aims to display how being vulnerable on a stage can give the performers a sense of validation. Throughout this project, a relationship has been formed between photographer and subject, allowing her to fit easily into the family dynamic and gain enough trust for the performers to discuss their own vulnerability. Age of THE is unapologetic in it’s nature; unapologetically queer, unapologetically loud and unapologetically accepting, dwelling in the dark back rooms of bars and clubs in Leeds and waiting for a chance to crawl out into the light.

@jessdoigphotography

‘Horbury Gardens Residency’, is a commercial advertising project exploring the new ‘loss of control’ within day-to-day life, lack of photography equipment and loss of control within photoshoots. Exploring a range of techniques and utilising water, paint and light creatively, this body of work explores the creation of commercial photos through the lack of resources during lockdown. It makes use of household objects to further signify a specific photographic style within the advertising world, creating non-branded, specifically stylised photographs to add to the portfolio for clientele in the future post-graduation. Also, it is a further exploration of new skills, approaches and composition; fuelled by creativity, inspiration and innovation.

mikedysonstudio.com / @mikedysonstudio

The Pudsey Harley-Davidson enthusiasts’ story is told by Mike Dyson, using studio and environmental portrait images of four members of the group. Dyson’s images show an otherwise hidden aspect of the group, with their biker attire, very personal mementos and where they keep and maintain their beloved Harley-Davidson motorcycles. From Dyson’s studio and environmental portraiture background, the motivation was to document this story in a series of personalised portraits, before this dying breed of locals has gone forever. His ideas and concepts behind the project are to identify and document the different ways that each member had brought their personality and experiences into the Harley-Davidson group. This series of images communicates that these enthusiasts exist. It documents the behind the scenes activities and talents of the people involved, which is rarely seen to the outsider. But above all, it showcases and records in history the existence of the biker community in this locality.

jonnyeastwoodphoto.com / @jonnyeastwoodphoto

Death is the one truth in life, the inescapable aspect of our reality. There is a beauty in change. There is a beauty in how things change. Our skin falls and contorts away from its once firm posture. Leaves fall from their once proud position on the branches of trees to create a carpet on the floor. A conversation eventually reaches its end and we part ways. But there is a beauty in change. Time affects us all differently. The effects of time touch us all individually through loss and hardship to new life and new opportunities. We deal with these problems individually and although this is a subject that affects all, it is our personal adaptation to new environments and situations that allows us to understand or at least try to understand our place within life. There is a darkness in change, one can lose the control of demons that plague the mourning mind and fall into oneself. One can get lost in their own thoughts. Act in justifying such an unjustifiable entity that is time and ultimately death. There is a beauty in change. Our skin falls into new positions finding new beauty. The leaves which once carpeted the floor will go on to fertilise and reshape landscapes, become food and part of the earth again. A conversations end makes way for new iterations and displays of knowledge and interest. There is a beauty in change.

@charlie_emm

Shot using a low budget point and shoot 35mm and a mini polaroid camera, the project ‘UNTITLED’ was made to combine the photographer’s fashion photography with his personal images, to find a transferable style of image making. After moving to the city and feeling homesick for nature, the photographer’s work explores how spaces such as those in his images, can stir memories and feelings that you can relate to geographical locations, elsewhere. The photographer does this through his snapshot images of the mundane, that show the things he saw and wanted to make a memory of. Through this body of work, the photographer hopes to inform his fashion images and try to incorporate the style of image making he uses in his personal work, whilst also using it to create a narrative around those fashion-based images. Charlie hopes to evoke a feeling of memory and place to the viewers, so that they can relate the photographs to their own experiences of the natural world and the memories they hold.

@kelseyevansphoto

‘Voyageurs’ is a documentary project which looks at the process and development of racing pigeons, along with their pigeon fanciers. Set in a northern post-mining rural community, this body of work focuses on the relationship between man and bird and provides insight into the emotions that come with putting time, effort, money, and trust into a loft of pigeons. Allowing a new-born pigeon to fly for the first time there is no promise that the now domesticated bird will survive, but for the fanciers, this is a risk they are willing to take. Their devotion and appreciation for these birds is a love that is difficult to match. A social study using a documentary photographic style, this project focuses on more intimate settings of these subjects. This series captures the hard work put into this lifestyle behind the scenes, the care given, and the emotional toll of loss compared to the glamour of succeeding that is more commonly documented. A glance into a sport which is loved by many yet declining in participation.

@georgiafphoto

‘Searching for Heaven’ is a group of fine art photographic prints that centre around Greek mythology and the afterlife. The body of work features portraits with a surreal, dream-like quality. The project recreates several Greek myths into a series of photographs. These include the River Styx, Charon and Minthe which all deal with the afterlife in some way or another. Pre-Raphaelite paintings such as Ophelia by John Everett Millais and Lady Lilith by Dante Gabriel Rossetti are used as inspiration for creating photographs. Overall, this project is my way of creating another world and exploring my own thoughts on life after death. Greek mythology has always been a subject of personal interest and the process of gathering research made me explore my own thoughts and feelings regarding the afterlife. I am no longer so afraid as to whether there is life after death.

@fi_photos

‘Hanging in the Balance’ is a science-fiction meets science-fact photographic exploration into what fundamentally makes us human. Through this venture the artist examines the ways in which we are using technology to change our natural physiology. It looks to question the ethics of advancing technologies imposing on our human evolution and how science fiction literature has influenced the science of today looking closely at whether or not there is the possibility for a utopia in our future. The project explores bio mechatronics, cybernetics, A.I. and gene engineering, looking at how they are becoming ever more present in our day-to-day lives, altering our bodies and minds. The artist considers human characteristics such as mortality, natural selection, healing, creativity and growth, and seeks to open up a conversation asking whether or not it is ethical or socially sustainable to stray too far from our Edenic origins and practice at playing God.

‘Hands and Feet’ is a body of work that uses portraits intertwined with images of hands and feet to show how the climate in Thailand and the lifestyle the locals lead affects their bodies. Thai people, in small less fortunate communities, work hard manual labour jobs to generate income. For example, some of them run small market stalls; this means that they get up at 1am in order to grab the best spot and set up in time for the early morning market. This is intense and requires hard work and dedication; it has a significant impact on their bodies. In addition, they work in hot humid climates which affects the appearance of their skin. Many cultural beliefs in Thailand surround the use of hands and feet. It is important to remove footwear before entering someone’s property, the reason behind this is that feet are seen as dirty and symbolically low, therefore it is disrespectful to not remove your shoes. Placing both hands together when saying thank you is another sign of respect within Thai culture, this is important as it is a gesture Thai people use when respecting the Buddha.

sameraphotography.com / @sameraphotography

Samera Hussain is a commercial photographer who explores the issue of racial diversity within the beauty industry - the cosmetics industry in particular - in order to expand the narrow definition of beauty that is currently being upheld as the industry standard. Samera was inspired by the release of Fenty Beauty in 2017; a cosmetics line created by Rihanna, a woman of colour for people of colour. Throughout her photographic work, she hopes to shine a light on non-Eurocentric beauty and celebrate all skin tones and ethnicities. This body of work focuses on women of colour owned cosmetic brands in order to shift the western ideal of normative beauty and enabling the marginalised to feel represented. ‘Beauty in All Shades’ is for anyone that has felt like they have never seen themselves in an advert, on a billboard or in a magazine spread.

@emma.j.jackson

‘Siren’ looks at the ever increasing concerns around the fashion industry and its effects on our most precious resource; water. Fast fashion is a huge problem in modern day society and as human impact on the planet becomes more prominent every year, so does the issue of water scarcity. Misuse and overuse are the direct cause of our uncertain future around the availability of fresh potable water. Water is our life determinant, a resource which exists in natural environments until human existence starts to bear down and change the natural cycle of things. These photographs outline the modern relationship between water, mankind and fashion.

nikitasarahjohnson.com / @nikitasj_photos

‘Significant Places’ is a photographic project which explores the significance a place can have to someone. It features portraits and photographs of places that signify meaning to that individual. Space vs. Place is a term used within geography to describe the relationship between an environment and a person. Philosopher Yi-Fu Tuan researched the differences between a space and a place. According to Tuan the difference between ‘space’ and ‘place’ can be defined in the extent to which human beings have given meaning to a specific area. 'Space' can be described as a location which has no social connections for a human being. 'Place' is in contrast more than just a location and can be described as a location created by human experiences. Due to the outbreak in Covid-19 cases this project had to be adapted to comply with government regulations. The photographer, Nikita Johnson, has included herself within this series. Taking self-portraits along with an intimate look into her own significant place - her garden. The project hopes to capture this unique relationship and echo a person’s memory and moment with an environment.

@ninalouphoto

‘Who am I?’ centres around fashion photography crossed with fine art. This project broke down the barriers of the typical models used in the fashion industry, who have set the unrealistic standard of what we consider to be beautiful. This pressures them into wanting to look a specific way and this leads to lowering self-esteem. The series depicts people who would not class themselves as fitting into ‘the norm’. This series is about breaking down societal pressures imposed by traditional fashion models to promote diversity. Why shouldn’t these people represent the diverse population we are a part of? Each of the models shown has grown from childhood into the person they are today in the face of adversity. They are confident young adults who have learnt that they are able to express themselves despite unrealistic beauty standards being forced on them, and each has developed and grown into their unique personality and has had to learn to accept themselves for who they are and want to be. The damaging message being broadcast by the fashion industry is one with far-reaching consequences, we must strive to recognise this to ensure future generations are encouraged to flourish in their own unique way.

rubankphotography.co.uk / @rubanketchen_photography

‘Manufactured Structures’ and ‘Supermarché’ are 35mm film-based documentary projects photographed in Thailand, France and Iceland. This body of work encapsulates the diverse and distinctive architecture that we experience when visiting new countries. It depicts the existence of the human race and the evidence of the impact of that existence on the environment. ‘Manufactured Structures’ uses the effect of leading lines and structure to create a contrasting representation of positive and negative and how, as a society, we enforce this through our actions and learning. We are told to ‘look up’ in negative situations and this is something people can explore. In addition we live in a society that has become driven by looking down and being engrossed in technologies, rather than seeing the world for ourselves. In relation to the devastating pandemic of Covid-19, this series represents the time and influence of human beings, and creates a nostalgic aesthetic due to the disappearance of life and energy that we visually and physically experience on a day-to-day to basis. When this is taken away we are left with a quiet unnatural world with a confused sense of meaning. Even though this energy is taken away there are still clues and evidence of human beings, which adds to the uneasy feel of these photographs.

@gracielphoto

‘Skate off’ is a documentary project looking at the skate community both prior to and during the Coronavirus lockdown. It is an exploration of the community and the styles and fashions that they share as well as trying to capture what it is like for skaters during the lockdown period. The artist wanted to play with the concept of what is classed as a stereotypical portrait. The original intention of the project was to capture subjects in their skate community environment with continued emphasis on their fashion. However, owing to the lockdown the artist had to adapt their project and document the community in new ways including socially-distanced portraits and ‘portraits’ of, once lively, skate parks. The artist intends to continue this project for the remainder of the lockdown and thereafter and hopes to build an even stronger rapport with the community.

'Not so innocent' is a fictional documentary take on a forensic murder mystery. It was taken, staged and modelled by the photographer in her own back garden during the Covid-19 Lockdown. Set along the current theme of working-class jobs, the photographer has decided to give a gardener a different outlook in an Agatha Christie twisted way, making his job appear not as innocent as the viewer would imagine. This project aims to create a staged documentary series of what would usually be an unpleasant, bloody and grim situation and give them an artistic cinematic look. Following along with the forensic style, the viewer gets to decide themselves what they think could have happened, purposely left a mystery by the photographer herself. The images are a combination of the crime scene and ones taken in a forensic lab where the 'evidence' was taken to be photographed and logged, this can be seen in the publication along with the exhibition.

lydiapalacio.co.uk

'Witch' is a project with deep historical roots, which not only explores the wrongful persecution of women but also the religious intrigue of the Middle Ages into the early modern period. It accomplishes this by utilising abstract and thought-provoking art alongside historical prose and reflective poetry. This combination invokes various emotions and conjures up a sense of magic and fear. The motivation behind this project is to bring to light the dark roots of our past. The work explores the stereotype of the witch and its origins but opposes it by bringing humanity and truth to the wrongly convicted innocents of the fifteenth, sixteenth, and seventeenth centuries. The project is supported by extracts from prominent books, such as The Holy Bible, The Malleus Maleficarum (Hammer of Witches), and Shakespeare’s Macbeth. Alongside the texts are eye-opening, intimate passages including a letter written by a victim of the witch hunts, Johannes Junis, and reflective poetry composed by the photographer. All these factors, with ventures into folklore, feminism and heritage, contribute to make 'Witch' a compelling and unique take on a dark period of history, all the way into the modern-day.

smpphotography.org / @smp_photog

Sally Patton’s series ‘1-7845’ is titled after the beginnings of colours she explores throughout the series. Based on the Pantone Spring/Summer colours of 2020, Patton brings her association with colour and nature together along with the effects this can have on mental health. Patton leads us through a series of abstract and obscure images that explain her take on the relationship with colour that she has. There is a sense of ambiguity and abstraction which is telling through the colour, light and composition. Patton also combines detailed and textured garments with mundane objects to create playfulness. This re-creates her sense of optimism and hope throughout the global pandemic in which she made the work. While the light box preserves the integrity and intensity of one of the colours, the other images sit below on a shelf. Differing in scale and orientation, the rest of the series in the exhibition create a draw to the prints for the viewer to see up close, the detail and texture. Creating a new world in her boring repetitive lifestyle of isolation, Patton uses the series to make an inside that therapizes her mind. It also serves as a sense of solace in a new world which is not allowing her to experience colour which comes from outdoors.

@charliepphotography / charlielynp.wixsite.com

Being naked means to be exposed, vulnerable and bare. This project explores different ways to expose the human body and display its perfections, imperfections and essentially appreciate the natural beauty of the nude. ‘Naked’ is a collection of fine art photographic work that challenges the taboo of the naked body and how it should be seen. This means that the parts and positions of the body that are rarely or never seen are being uncovered and exhibited for all to see. ‘Naked’ is displaying what is often hidden and making it acceptable to be seen. The motivations for this project came from personal experiences with the photographer and her own body image and self identity, whose aim is for the body to be accepted in society no matter of size, gender, age or race.

sophierackett.wixsite.com / @sophierackett

‘Lady Swan’ explores the euphoric experience within dance through documenting ballet’s impact over certain individuals. Rackett documents raw emotion through her short film and references dance’s therapeutic nature over one ballerina in particular, Jemma. Throughout Lady Swan, Rackett creates a ‘dreamscape’ setting, visually manipulating the human presence by capturing ballets movement ambiguously. Rackett focuses on documenting things that visually reference ballet but also act as devices to portray her psychological concepts surrounding dance. ‘Lady Swan’ is also an exploration of ‘truth’, physically investigating truth through the process of making and re-making objects. Through extracting something that’s physically present within her work and presenting it in the same context, Rackett creates an immersive experience, pushing this concept further into the viewer's reality. Rackett’s short films documenting the metal ballet shoe give ‘Lady Swan’ depth alongside her other images and main film. The short videos pair intense instrumentals with ‘quiet’ visuals, giving the viewer time to question the psychological concepts addressed through ‘Lady Swan’.

@grogspo / @georgiagrams / www.georgiarichards.co.uk

When you have ADHD, your brain can’t focus on one thing, or even two things. Your brain is receptive to all information, all the time. The nervous system is always working at full speed. When it’s impossible to focus, it becomes impossible to stop new things vying for your attention, so it becomes impossible to rest. You can never settle. This isn’t always overwhelming, but it’s always disconcerting. There is no mental peace. These photographs are part of a photography-based, interactive installation called Disconcerta that aims to create an environment in which the viewer is able to experience a similar feeling of disconcertion. The aim of this work is for the viewer to experience a visual puzzle. They may struggle to focus on one part of the image. The photograph is hung straight, but its composition is off-kilter, not sitting quite right with the viewer. It’s imbalanced. The exhibition space would be filled with things I was distracted by in the development of this exhibition, and ideas that were abandoned in the development process because my attention was caught by something else. I want people to be absorbed in the experience of viewing my work, but unable to hone in and focus on any one singular part of it.

miasilviostyles.com / @_miasilviostyles

Hearts of Alexandria is a discovery of the photographers’ family history, exploring the subject with fragments of knowledge of the now deceased Maltese family. The family fled from Egypt in the aftermath of the Suez crisis in 1956. All that is left is the images they managed to bring back and the words of the fragmented stories on the backs. It is an attempt at deconstructing the family’s narrative through creating a relationship with contemporary image making, which in turn demonstrations all the similarities between the two and creates a continuation of the past. This is reflection, a shadow, a piece of the story, united with elements of creativity which has painted the photographer’s vision.

jackieslaterphotography.co.uk / @jackieslaterstudio

Beneath the Waves, from the series Still, Life

Slater’s fine art practice explores different aspects of memory, memorialisation, and perception. She uses neuroscience and psychology to inform her work and is drawn to symbolism and portraiture to reveal the way in which we, collectively and as individuals, process and respond to our world through memory and photography. Slater has provided a free portrait service to hospice users for several years, getting to know many individual service-users over varying periods of time. Participants may optionally consent for their portraits to be used in Slater’s wider artistic practice and many are highly engaged at the thought of collaborating in art which uniquely expands their memorialisation. Processing conversations with individuals with life-limiting illnesses can be a very isolated experience and Slater was struck by how frequently she reflected upon conversations through arranging objects in a virtual room in her mind. This is a recognised psychological practice in which memories are more readily recalled by relating them to objects visualised within the environment of an imagined so-called “Roman Room”. In the series Still, Life, Slater pairs the portraits she has taken at the hospice with studio constructions of unique Roman Rooms, each of which, accompanied by text, contains reflections upon specific conversations.

eslorick.co.uk

El Slorick’s work is an exploration of our landscapes and sound; using a fine art approach to landscape photography in order to communicate a personal experience. These photographs have been taken from a body of work titled ‘Hz’, exploring through photography how the work of locally based musicians has been influenced by their relationship and emotional experiences amongst surrounding landscapes. Based on early studies of classical music from theorists such as William Gardner, which discuss the musical inspiration taken from the sounds of nature, the images are also intended to portray the poetic imagery, liveliness and theatre found in music and landscapes alike. Through the use of moving image and sound, Slorick is bringing to life her experiences of intricate classical music in a way which is made accessible to the uninformed eye; and is presenting the beauty and lyricism that is often taken for granted within our natural movements and surroundings.

@sebsmith____ / seb-smith.com / rouffetsmith.com

As the Anvil Falls.

“I want to tell the story again” Greek mythology tells the oldest tales of humanity, explaining the world and its imperfections. Written interpretations of the myths set them in poetry, with wordsmiths honing them to fit their time and place as well as their vision, telling the story over and over again. The myths have been the basis of our culture, shaping art and informing religion, over and over we have been telling the story again. These are everyone’s stories and here Smith tells the story again. Using Greek mythology as a lens to observe the world, Smith makes work which is not rooted in time or place. His images retell numerous myths, through abstractions and metaphor, avoiding purely illustrating, instead embellishing and shaping the myths in the image of his own experience, as has been done for millennia. As the Anvil Falls as a photographic project is presented through a mixture of sculpture and book form, investigating and commenting on the prevalence of Greek mythology within our society and the ways in which it manifests within our everyday surroundings. Smith’s book is due to be published by Tide Press later in 2020.

@gallery97_art / facebook.com/gallery97artist  / etsy.com/uk/shop/Gallery97art 

The project “____PHOBIA” is a combination of different phobias I have or others around me have. Each has been photographed with a fine art perspective as an attempt to combat such fears with exposure therapy and art therapy. Hopefully, looking at these phobias from the comfort of an environment of your choice, combined with the fine art dilution photography has created will allow the audience to face the fears on a conceptual level. Or this series can just be enjoyed for the photography on an aesthetic level. In my experience, the way to face fears, problems or trauma is to alter your perspective on the issue. Through this, I have overcome fears and I hope, through sharing my stories, I can help others do the same.

@bthomas__photography

Show Day is a lifestyle documentary project that explores and details, through photography, more than just the ‘showing’ part of dog shows. It captures and reveals different aspects of a typical ‘Show Day’, going behind the scenes to give a ‘warts and all’ account. There is increasing negativity associated with dog shows, and many questions whether they are fair to dogs and if there is a need for them. So, it was important for the photographer, Bethan, to create a body of work to educate and give an insight into what takes place at a show, and to portray the people and dogs that take part in them. Through photographic images Bethan has endeavoured to achieve this.

@northpho1o

The UK rap scene is no longer exclusive to the communities within the boroughs of London. Artists from around the country are now rising and pushing this relatively new sound forward. Artists from the city of Leeds are definitely no exception when we consider the fast rate at which rap culture is expanding. 'M A S S' aims to visually document the individuals who perform at Leeds-based events and the individuals who are starting to build careers from their music, pushing UK Rap in Leeds to new heights. With the photographer being an avid listener to the genre, naturally a fascination to visually capture the scene became apparent in 2019. The photographer’s process has involved attending events to document the scene, taking on commissions, and contacting artists individually to meet, shoot, and visit locations around Leeds that have some significance to the artists progression within the rap scene. The images exhibited belong to an ongoing project which shows the photographers dedication to capturing the rap events; the rap community; and a developed relationship between artist and photographer that is built upon communication, trust and the overall concept of helping one another with our individual practises through making visual content.

@siriajanis / www.siriajanis.com

Italian photographer Siria Toccafondi explores the cultural differences and similarities between Britain and her homeland. Using a poetic sensibility, Toccafondi interrogates the environment photographically, looking for visual stimulations and symbols in her everyday life. With this work, the artist draws connections between fragments of her memories in an attempt to redefine the meaning of casa (home) and where she belongs. This is especially reflected in the sequencing of the photographs, which aims to draw the viewer in a tornado of visual stimuli and references, jumping between one fragment and another with ambiguity. The artist wants to communicate her research for identity and belonging, not only due to her personal experiences of integrating from one culture to another, but also because of the current situation – which has changed the nature of her stay in England from chosen, to imposed. Toccafondi finds it as relevant as ever to show her intimate perspective and create a unique atmosphere.

‘For The First Time’ is the result of an exploration between self and environment, the camera acting as the bridge between the two. The process of photography is cathartic for Aidan, slowing down his approach to image making, he considers his subject and their relationship. The materiality of a photograph is just as important, being drawn to Japanese culture, Aidan reflects on this by incorporating natural dyeing into the printing process.

@wleung.chow

Yongliang Zhou ‘40’ was the extension from the previous projects ‘Scottish icon’ and ‘Edgelands’. The title is the number that represents the word ‘quarantine’. It was a journey of personal awareness, exploring the impressions of man-altered landscape in the city of Leeds, from the perspective of an outsider. The series of images aims to display more about the environmental atmosphere, feeling of emptiness under the epidemic. People have been self-isolating at home due to Covid-19. The urban area has become a different landscape, like a journey into no man's land. It was the intersection of psychology and geography, also the thinking process generated from personal awareness to the environmental atmosphere, a monologue demonstrated ‘a way to delve into the soul of a city’. The photographer wanted to use ‘40’ to document and commemorate in 3 different stages, Lockdown, Drifting and Rebirth. He collided and gazed through the street and the alleyways to the surrounding area, making photographs with strong visual impact in monochrome, which reflects the feeling of loneliness and the movement of life at that time. Aware of depression, people there can not integrate into any part of the local community, like antisocial aliens.