In My Backyard  

2010-2012

 

The privileged lifestyle that we enjoy in the west is dependent upon global scale  production and distribution networks, as a result of this most of us will never see the processes used or know the people who produce our goods, or comprehend the environmental and human costs of this situation.

 

I wanted to make photographs about the disconnection between production and domestic consumption, A blindspot in our perception of the world that is of course reinforced by marketing campaigns specifically designed to divert us from this reality.

 

Photographers looking to create images about these issues usually get on a plane to China, I wanted to look closer to home -so I chose a more sustainable method of travel and got on my bike to photograph sites of production and distribution within pedalling distance of Bristol. Picking up on the idea of cultural myopia I became interested in depicting nuclear power stations and pylons, both of which are highly contentious when situated nearby but are broadly accepted as long as they are ‘not in my backyard’