Artist’s Statement
Alison Price is a photographer searching for the ephemeral hiddenness of the Isle of Skye. Seduced by its natural beauty, her love affair with the Island began twenty years ago, but as the years moved on, her work has sought to capture the ‘otherness’ of the Island. Whilst most go in search of the sweeping landscape vistas, Alison seeks out the tiny aspects of nature that act as a metaphor for the Island more generally: its vulnerability, fragility, ever-changing moods and ultimately its triumph over adversity, its resilience and its longevity. For her, this is the essence of Skye.
For Alison, the digital camera is an extension of herself. She uses it like a paintbrush, at one with the instrument and in complete intuitive control of the technology at her fingertips. She prefers to do her creative work in-camera, whether through slow shutter speeds (allowing nature to speak for itself and create its own shapes and patterns), multiple exposure, and intentional camera movement. For Alison, the camera is a unique instrument. Using its power to reduce the dimensions of space and freeze time, she seeks to subvert conscious perception and open the essence of her subject to the awareness of the human heart.
Her images seek to capture what the philosopher Jacques Derrida calls the “unnameable glimmer” and what Alison refers to as “being behind the veil of presence”. Alison’s search is for the reality behind the veil no matter where it may be – whether through images of reeds, a lone silver birch tree on a rocky outcrop, the colours of Autumn or in the woodlands and forests of Skye. In doing so, she tends towards a painterly aesthetic in a muted colour palette. She intends to extend her portfolio through all four seasons of the year.
With her camera, Alison opens herself to the ephemeral moment that eludes sensory perception. When that moment comes, she allows her intuition to guide her, and, in that moment, Skye’s reality is revealed.
Biography
Alison Price is a photographer based on the Isle of Skye, part of the Inner Hebrides, off the north-west coast of Scotland. With a first degree in History and an MA in Photography with Distinction (2020) from Falmouth University she is now working towards a practice-based PhD at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, University of Dundee.
She was awarded a Fellowship of the Royal Society of Arts in 2005. Her wildlife photography was recognised with a Licentiate of the Royal Photographic Society in 2011 and an Associate (Professional & Applied) in 2012. From 2007 to date, Alison has travelled the world capturing orang-utans, mountain gorillas, brown bears, polar bears, penguins, seals, whales and the plethora of mammals in Africa. In 2011 she was granted a six-week sabbatical in order to work to undertake charity work in Africa, helping to educate local children about the animals on their doorstep through her photographic imagery. She was short-listed for the Outdoor Photographer of the Year and Wildlife Photographer of the Year in 2011.
More recently, Alison has turned her attentions to nature on the Isle of Skye. Her Final Major Project for her MA was entitled The Ephemeral Hiddenness of Skye. While working on her MA she had two solo exhibitions: The Road to Elgol (2018), in Tetbury, Gloucestershire and The Essence of Skye (2019) at An Crubh on Skye. She also submitted work to the Landings (2018) on-line Exhibition at Falmouth University. She collaborated with a local artist on Skye in a joint exhibition held at Gallery An Talla Dearg in 2019
