Reframing Fields of Vision: From “Pencil of Nature” to Environmental Futures

Since its inception, photography has been used to explore the geographic and the botanical. This talk centres on British photography and ways in which photographers have used the camera to explore place and environment, particularly in relation to rural lands and landscapes. Early photographs were generally accepted as ‘straight’ empirical evidence. More recently, photography has become associated with interrogative questioning of ecosystems and environmental change. We shall note historical developments, including changing notions of beauty in landscape. Then, through critical evaluation of selected recent examples, we shall consider conceptual framing, ways of seeing and modes of photographic representation.

Suggested reading

• Robert Adams, ‘Truth and Landscape’ in Beauty in Photography (Aperture, 1996), pp. 11- 20.
• David Bate, ‘Notes on Beauty and Landscape’ in Liz Wells, Kate Newton & Catherine Fehily (eds), Shifting Horizons. (I B Tauris, 2000). pp. 34-38.
• Doreen Massey, ‘Landscape as a Provocation: Reflections on Moving Mountains’ Journal of Material Culture, 11(1-2) 2006, pp. 33–48.
• Jem Southam, ‘Landscape Stories’ in Liz Wells & Simon Standing, Change (University of Plymouth Press, 2007), pp. 8-23.
• Liz Wells, ‘Case Study: Landscape as Genre’ in Photography, A Critical Introduction, ed. 5 (Routledge, 2015), pp. 331-344.

Before the talk you might like to look at a couple of examples of land -oriented work by photographers such as: Anna Atkins, Mandy Barker, John Darwell, John Davies, Susan Derges, P.H.Emerson, Garry Fabian Miller, David Farrell, Sophie Gerrard, Fay Godwin, Paul Hill, John Kippin, Chrystel Lebas, Walter Lewis, Frank Meadow Sutcliffe, Ingrid Pollard, Jem Southam.