Chwilio am Thomas / Searching for Thomas - updated - (In the footsteps of a photographer)

On the 8th of May 1853 a 15-year-old boy, set out on a 140-mile journey from his village in West Wales to the city of Liverpool in England. This boy was John Thomas (1838-1905) of Cellan, who went on to thrive as an important photographic pioneer: From his home in Liverpool, he repeatedly returned to Wales travelling its length and breadth with his camera. Over a period of more than 30 years, Thomas gathered a unique photographic record; taking the very first photographs in many rural locations. On the 30th of August 2021, I followed in Thomas’s footsteps, walking from my home in Cellan, on the same route to Liverpool, photographing the one journey that John Thomas was, as a boy, unable to document. This pilgrimage was filled with revelations: I took many photographs, walking further than Thomas, uncovering a photographic process, which investigated the relationships between contemporary and historical landscapes. The results were often a surprising mixture of eccentric, isolated, partly forgotten spaces whose photographs generate a sense of nostalgia. Many of the photos show way-markers (buildings and objects) that I found on route.