The above image shows a small selection of my favorite photography and illustration zines which I self published over the past two years. From left to right: Suburban Wasteland Haiku, Interzone, Concrete Foliage and Hauntings.
The photo above shows interior pages of the zines Interzone, Hauntings, Suburban Wasteland Haiku and Concrete Foliage. Each zine follows a specific theme and aesthetic, yet all are connected by the wider theme of ways in which people relate to and interact with overlooked areas of the landscape.
I made my first zine in early 2018 and it was called The Loop. It was a photo essay charting a number of journeys I made around the lesser seen edges of Amsterdam. After making and printing the physical paper zine I scanned the pages in order to share them online and via social media. Below is a selection of the scanned pages* (the entire zine can be seen at https://www.liminalresidency.co.uk/the-loop-a-journey-around-amsterdams-edgelands/).
*I wanted the aesthetics of the zine to emulate a punk attitude, which I thought reflected the types of areas I was looking at. If I had a budget to make a zine I would definitely collaborate with a graphic designer in order to give the pages maximum appeal to a viewer.
The photo underneath shows the analogue collage technique I use to make the plates for my zines. It cut and paste photo prints, printed text, drawings and other relevant 2D material.
In early 2020 I began a residency on the island of Gran Canaria. My intention was to use the time read, organise my notes and spend time alone hiking in unfamiliar nature. Whilst there I set myself a photo assignment of documenting how people have carved out their existence in the rocky environment. In particular I was interested in how anti-conformist behaviour was expressed in the unstable and volcanic suburban landscapes.
I chose to make a new project where I would seek out what I called 'illegitimate wildernesses' within Amsterdam: areas where nature was breaking through the cracks in the city and defying human control and order. To see the resilience and diversity of nature in the city I created ten circular routes, or tours, to travel around, photographing and sketching my findings. Over the course of three months I travelled more than 370km on foot or on bicycle often in heatwaves or summer storms.
The final presentation of my research was called The Unofficial Bastard Countryside Tour. Alongside 500 photos I also displayed some of my textile artworks and drawings. My idea was to make artworks which resembled tour merchandise.
The following photos are details of the installation.
During the exhibition I collaborated with an Amsterdam company called Nature Desks who generously supplied me with the Amsterdam Urban Nature maps which I use in the exhibition. Also during the exhibition I collaborated with the editor-in-chief of the failed Failed Architecture website who gave a talk at the gallery relating urban planning to my artwork. I also invited a story teller to create a performance in the gallery where he related historical and poetic readings to the work I had on show.
As a side note: Back in 2016 whilst visiting Japan (and making photos of quiet locations in one of the most densely populated cities in the world) I took the following photo from the top of Tokyo Tower during a smoggy sunset. Later that month the photo was one of the winners of De Hallen Haarlem's Wonderlust photo competition...
