Artist CV
Graham Hembrough
Artist’s Statement
Graham has been working as a documentary and landscape photographer for 27 years. This project marks a turning point for his work and examines the wider possibilities of collaborating, presenting and combining “straight” photography, photo-montage and traditional art media.
“Llanddwyn, Moments in Time” is based on the land / seascape of a geographic area on the south coast of Anglesey close to Newborough Warren, Aber Menai Point, Newborough beach, Llanddwyn Island and Malltraeth beach. Collectively simply titled ‘Llanddwyn’ as this is where he often ended up and the isle was never far from his sight whilst working on this project.
Some of the work is made up of constructed images, Graham was keen to broaden his earlier work as a documentary and landscape photographer by exploring the opportunities that working digitally has in relation to his more recent interest in collage and photomontage. Some of the work here resulted from working collaboratively with artists, Siân Hutchinson and Jacha Potgieter to combine traditional art media with his photographs and Graham’s new digital approaches.
Graham’s images are not simply landscape studies; they articulate environmental issues and concerns, memory and occasionally reference the local mythology. Graham’s work takes you on a journey, through observing both nature and man’s interaction and relationship with a specific ‘sense of place’.
Artist quotation:
“The notion of ‘time and journeys’ is an important one; its effect on changing land and seascape here is unmistakeable. Possibly the most significant changes are produced in equal measure by man and nature – always an uneasy alliance.
Ynys Llanddwyn and the Reserve never fail to inspire and surprise me, the tender balance here of the natural and manmade world holds a fascination that will long continue. It is in recognition of these elements that gradually guided my artwork, pushing my images further than simply documentary to images that seek to convey the spirit and the nature of temporality that together provided my experience of a ‘sense of place’.
It is interesting that the future shaping and management of this nature reserve have been hotly debated recently and the consultation processes to conclude these decisions have taken place over the year I have been wondering with my camera. No doubt nature itself will have a part to play in these decisions over time”.
Web links for more information about the artist and his work:
© Oriel Plas Glyn-y-Weddw Arts Centre 2008
