The Darkest Hour
The urban environment has been subject to inspection and analysis by generations of writers, artists and latterly photographers. Living in a fairly remote part of North Wales for over thirty years my experience of the city has been limited, though every visit is keenly anticipated, and each is an opportunity to discover and experience the opportunities that they afford. I enjoy walking the streets, watching, hearing and smelling the environment and the people that inhabit it, it seems only by walking that you can discover the intimate environments, alleyways, hidden places, the ragged remains of human habitation; the lost or discarded, abandoned clothing and beer glasses that hint of nights of fun.
Of particular fascination is the city waking up, the moment the day starts with a soft glow in the former night sky and the beginnings of the low rumble as the streets start fill with buses, cars and in some cities, trams. The people that inhabit the night time are gradually replaced by the people of the day, often equally bleary eyed as they approach or return from work, even if that work is to emerge from a doorway ‘home’ to commence a days begging. Everybody makes their mark on the urban landscape, even if only by their presence, though some leave evidence of their having been there, discarded drug paraphernalia, litter, and graffiti, even footprints in snow. In the images that follow I have tried to compare this awakening in a variety of cities, I wanted to explore differences and similarities. I visited and photographed Berlin, Paris, Dublin, Swansea, Cardiff, Liverpool and Bangor, always shooting between 6.30 and 8am. I deliberately did not plan any routes, instead I just moved instinctively following any visual clue that appeared of interest. Actual people, where they appear are blurred, I wanted to capture the feeling of glimpses being fleeting, in particular on cold mornings people tend to move quickly, tightly wrapped in coats or their own thoughts, they appear and disappear wraith-like through the half gloom. As my exploration developed I felt that this aspect needed to be a part of the final body of work. |