Acres of Value

Acres of value is a project that seeks to examine our current detachment from our landscape and the industrialisation of food production. It also touches upon our visual disruption of the land and our perception of the rural environment and its conservation. The area photographed has been the subject of planning for some 10,000 homes since 1998. I have no doubt that due to the housing crisis in the UK these homes will eventually be constructed, and recently the leader of the opposition referred to this parcel of land directly and confirmed his commitment to construction. The temporal nature of this area is what initially inspired the work, but as it progressed three different themes emerged. The photographs presented explore three concepts - Desert - Modern industrial arable farming, creating a virtually insect free environment which is heavily reliant on chemical growing processes and thus creating a ‘green desert’. Disconnected - Objects that do not sit comfortably within an environment. This idea, of course, is entirely subjective. The images presented could perhaps be considered reportage. Connected - Subjects that are connected, both in metaphor and actuality. The profusion of overhead power lines and other structures evident in these images, at first appeared an eyesore. As I contemplated my surroundings, I became aware that their presence (which I initially perceived as intrusion), provided an unexpected form of visual continuity.