It has been a long time since I posted in this Journal. The award of a PhD led me to the pinnacle of academic achievement, quickly followed by the award of a Fellowship from the Royal Photographic Society in recognition of my photographic research. I had been warned of the anti-climax following a PhD and found it difficult to re-enter the real world. My life has lacked the discipline, focus and emotional commitment I had during my research. My photographic practice also lacked the intensity of enquiry and understanding I experienced sitting by Loch Cill Chriosd or with the lone silver birch tree on the Isle of Skye.
I completed my MA in Photography in January 2020 and began my PhD in October 2020, during the Covid lockdown. I did not travel to the University of Dundee for the first fifteen months of my PhD because of ongoing restrictions. Continuing my research, after life returned to “the new normal”, I chose to remain in the Covid bubble I had created, and living on the Isle of Skye provided a buffer, allowing me to continue in the isolation I had enjoyed. It also allowed me the time and space to focus almost exclusively on my research and academic work. It was as if I was living in an alternative or parallel reality, and ironically, a reality I was seeking to uncover through my photographic practice and reveal in my photographic images. Had it not been for Covid, I think it is unlikely that I would have pursued a PhD.
In an attempt to return to the “real world”, a few months after I had been awarded my PhD, I decided to pick up my camera, find a new location, and capture the essence of trees again. During my PhD, I photographed a lone silver birch tree in the shadow of the Cuillin in autumn with some success – see images below. Several of these images were included in the handmade Artist’s Book, which formed part of the submission for my PhD. A copy of my book is available to view in the Artists’ Book Collection based at the University of Dundee.
Collaborative Practice 37 - Alison Price, October 2022
Lone Silver Birch Tree 4 - Alison Price, October 2022
Lone Silver Birch Tree 8 - Alison Price, October 2022
Lone Silver Birch Tree 10 - Alison Price, October 2022
Lone Silver Birch Tree 7 - Alison Price, October 2022
Lone Silver Birch Tree 8 - Alison Price, October 2022
Lone Silver Birch Tree 7 - Alison Price, October 2022
I have been on the look out for a new location where I can spend extended periods of time. I found a small wooded area, including several silver birch trees. I wanted to check it out and consider its potential for a longer term project. Here are the first images from a shoot taken as British Summer Time ends and winter takes over. . . I think it has potential!
Nettleton Wood 1 - Alison Price, October 2024
Nettleton Wood 2 - Alison Price, October 2024
Nettleton Wood 3 - Alison Price, October 2024
Nettleton Wood 4 - Alison Price, October 2024
References
Artists’ Book Collection, University of Dundee Museum Services
https://app.dundee.ac.uk/museum/collections/abcd/index.html
Price. A B J. 2024. Possibilising the Photographic Moment – Insights of Photographic Practice for Speculative Realism. PhD. University of Dundee.
Alison Price
My name is Alison Price and for the past ten years I have travelled the world photographing wildlife, including Alaska, Antarctica, Borneo, Botswana, the Canadian Arctic, Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.