RESTRICTED TO A PATH THAT HAS ALREADY BEEN SET OUT FOR ME, NO ROOM TO ROAM.
I am fascinated by the way my surroundings have such a profound effect on how I think and feel. A place is able to evoke different emotions, perceptions and experiences just in the way it looks, sounds and feels. In this series, I explore the differences in how I feel when living in Belfast, in contrast to living at home.
In the city, I feel confined by my surroundings, suffocated by the overwhelming architecture and the perpetual concrete that engulfs the entire landscape without room to breathe. I feel as though every road I walk down will be the same as the last, resisted to a path that has already been set out for me, no room to roam and explore for myself, nothing but what other people have put in front of me, with nowhere else to go.
At home I feel free and unrestricted from the artificial world that has been put in front of me. The natural world is prevalent here, whether it be the forests, the stars or the sea. I love to explore all of these wonderful features, making my own path into the endless foliage. Every time I’m here, there is something new, and it’s just waiting to be discovered. The sense of mystery of the rural landscape is what has steered my work from home.
I decided to photograph my series all during the night to get the raw, unaffected characteristics of the places that I photographed, without interference from human activity. The night gave the sense of mystery I wanted from my photos of home but also portrayed how alienated I feel living in the city.
