ARPS Panel

Statement of Intent – “Photographing the maritime graveyard at Purton Gloucestershire has provided me with a unique and artistic opportunity to produce an evocative and coherent set of images based around a tightly defined theme. The use of infrared film together with the adoption of extremely high or low vantage points has served to capture these mysterious hulks against either dramatic skies or more muted whispering grasses. Limited foreground and background reference points help to define and isolate the wrecks whilst the somewhat incongruous land/boat relationships serve to create perceptual intrigue.

The permanent recording of river craft deliberately beached along the banks of the Severn (to prevent land erosion) also provides me with an insightful window into the lives of my ancestors who lived and worked these vessels. As a monument to their lives let’s hope that these sad gentle relics forever link our past whilst simultaneously protecting the land for our safety in the future.”