Featured Photographer - January 2017

1. Asking For It

2. Outrage

3. Freedom

4. Class War Close

5. Arndale Carpark

6. Canal Crane

7. Asda Stop

8. Barbican Bank Holiday

9. Happy Thoughts

10. Starting Young

11. Preaching

12. Jesus Army

There are billions of people all situated on the same rock, flying through space at roughly 66000 miles per hour and we are basically made up of the same stuff, yet as individuals we are all very different. Our personal identities are what defines us and makes us who we are - some of which is pretty obvious and some not so much. Everything we see, do and take in, shapes and affects us to such an extent that even if large numbers of people experience exactly the same thing they all process it in varying degrees, ultimately making that particular experience different for everyone. The personal identities that mark and shape our personalities can seem so complex that they are almost indefinable in equal measures.

As a photographer I have developed such a fascination with this sense of identity - it has been the theme that has driven my artistic practice forward for a number of years. I am a product of my experiences and environment and I strive to show this in my work. I am also highly motivated by the fact that no matter what parts of myself I try to communicate in my work, no two people see exactly the same thing when looking at a piece. This is because they also bring their own identities to what they see, making them respond differently to the work.

I feel that it is not mostly an artist’s place to hand a story to the viewer but rather to ask questions of the audience, so that they can bring their own truths to what they see, making true art a very collaborative process. It is this joint journey of discovery that really excites me about art and the thing that drives me forward to grow and develop every time I pick up a camera.

~ L