7 minute read
Documentary Associate Panel - Mark Godfrey ARPS
Statement of Intent
An allotment can be a source of peace, solace and re-invigoration, and in the 2020s it is thriving. Fifty years ago, it was a male domain with 98% of holders’ men, but now women represent half of all allotment holders.
The allotment is a place that supports women’s mental health and physical wellbeing, where women feel safe, relaxed and at ease in their environment and have the time to reflect upon their lives. One woman said “being on the allotment makes me feel like all the stress and worries of everyday life disappear, and you are in your own world surrounded by peace and calm with nature”.
This was a view shared by other women I photographed. The images were taken throughout the seasons, showing the life cycle of the allotment, including its inaccessibility in the winter months due to weather conditions.
All images ©Mark Godfrey
Many congratulations Mark on your successful ARPS submission. Tell us a little bit about yourself.
I’m based in Warwickshire, England, and have enjoyed photography as an amateur for most of my life, joining my local photographic society as a teenager and then re-joining many years later after taking early retirement. In fact a friend and I joined our local photographic society and the RPS at the same time and we both embarked upon our Licentiate panels shortly afterwards in 2017 as a way to improve our photography. I’ve found that working on projects, particularly the RPS distinctions, to be stimulating and it has been paramount in my development and learning to become a more competent photographer. I was successful with my L panel in April 2019.
What was the thinking behind your Associate panel submission?
Following the LRPS it took quite some time to develop a project for my A panel. My background is in social care, which I worked in for forty years, and I wanted to undertake a project that would resonate with my social justice/anti-discriminatory values. I realised that you don’t need to travel long distances, and that there are potential projects all around you. I’m the main carer for my wife which meant that I wanted a project that was both close to home and somewhere I could visit regularly.
I initially came up with an idea for a year in the life of an allotment, but quickly recognised that this has been done many times and it needed to have some originality. By chance, I heard a discussion on BBC Radio 4 Woman’s Hour about how 63.7% of allotment holders in London were women (source: Fletcher, E, I and Collins, C, M. Urban Agriculture: Declining opportunity and increasing demand – How observations from London U.K can inform effective response, strategy and policy on a wide scale, Urban Forestry and Urban Greening, Vol 15 November 2020). The National Allotment Society estimated that half of all allotment holders nationally were now women, compared with 20% in 2003 and just 2% in 1973. This really interested me and brought back memories of being on my uncle’s allotment in the early 1970s when allotments were almost exclusively a male domain.
I developed my ARPS project from hearing this and reading the research. I sought permission to take photographs from my local allotment which is just 100 metres from my home. The allotment secretary examined his records for me and found that the figure of half of allotment holders being women was replicated locally.
Many congratulations on your Statement of Intent, often one of the most challenging aspects of the submissions process, which was clear and precise about what you were trying to achieve.
Thank you! My statement references this societal change and the fact that allotments provide a safe space for women that can support their physical and mental health. I wanted to capture the relaxing and calming nature of the allotment, a place where the women would spend many hours.
How easy was it to obtain the cooperation of the allotment holders?
I sought their permission to take photographs, explaining the project and my aims, and whilst most agreed, some declined for a variety of reasons. Over time I was able to develop good relationships with the allotment holders and committee members, both men and women, and attended their ‘Open Days’ where seeds were swapped and conversations were had together with an abundance of tea and homemade cakes. I provided photographs for publicising these events, and also for the local village Annual Horticultural and Flower Show. I’m very grateful to all the women at the allotment who allowed me into their world to take their photographs.
And how did you approach the actual shooting of the project?
Being based locally meant I could visit the site several times a day. I would even observe the allotments from my home and when I spotted someone, would grab the camera and go and meet them. Most of the photographs I took were candid shots of the women on their allotment, although I did ask some women if I could take specific shots that I had imagined.
Technically, I learned to focus on the detail in my photography, and you will see that some minor elements can have a real impact; for example there is the child and sleigh in the winter (image 1), the tea mug (image 9), the power tool batteries on the edge of the frame (image 11) and the sun hat (image 14).
You made your submission as a print version, presented in one row, which delivered a strong and cohesive narrative. Why did you choose that approach?
In early 2023 I purchased a Canon Pro 3000 printer, attended a print workshop and learned to print as I wanted to be in control of the photography process end-to-end. I quickly recognised the importance of selecting the right paper for the images, and after much consideration and discussion chose Permajet Museum Heritage Fine Art paper, which I thought would bring out the colour and the detail. I printed the images on A4 paper and had planned to use standard 500mm x 400mm mounts. However, the auditorium at RPS House in Bristol measures 6.4 metres in width and 15 standard mounts needed a space of 7.5 metres! As a solution I decided to use smaller 400mm x 300mm mounts so that I could have them displayed, as I wished, in one row. I even asked Nomad to make me a custom size print box in which to transport my work to Bristol.
I decided to present the images in one row so that I could take the viewer through the seasons from winter and back to winter, returning to and incorporating my original idea, and using the snow images as bookends.
Really strong A and F panel submissions take months, and often years, to create. How long did you work on your project?
The panel took almost three years from start to finish.
And what’s next?
I’m now working on developing a project for my FRPS and encouraging members of my local photographic society to embark upon an RPS distinction.
I also have to say that I’m especially grateful to my adviser Janey Devine FRPS for her observations in our one-to-one sessions. Since returning to photography, I have improved my skills through attending workshops and presentations for both the LRPS and ARPS which have been incredibly helpful in my development as a photographer.
