OPEN ECO: Kelly Hill, The River Nar, from the series Creta, 2023
‘Nature holds the key to our aesthetic, intellectual, cognitive and even spiritual satisfaction.’ E O Wilson
Using the medium of photography, drawing, walking and installation, Kelly Hill investigates how our interactions with the natural world have shifted - metaphorically, politically, and climatically. Her work explores how we are all a part of nature. From the particles we are made of, to the air we breathe, to our place in the world and our relationships with the more than human. Our urban environment may have alienated us from nature but our affinity with it is innate.
Kelly says: 'Photography can reveal what often goes unnoticed and bring compelling stories into public consciousness. The story I am bringing to the Open Eco theme is of Norfolk's unique and beautiful chalk-streams. My photograph, from the series, Creta, is taken in Kings Lynn very close to where the River Nar reaches the River Ouse. The project, that includes a portfolio of images and film, investigates the deep time over which chalk streams have evolved and compares it with the short-term thinking and actions that are destroying these fragile ecosystems as I journey down river with a local activist. At the end of the journey from pristine source to sea, the water is seen to flow over the detritus of human neglect.'
Kelly Hill is a photographer, curator and artist. She works closely with the Architect, Michael Pawlyn on the production of creative content for exhibition, film, publication and online, including Flourish (Pawlyn & Ichioka), Buey’s Acorns (Ackroyd & Harvey), Future Knowledge (Modern Art Oxford) and Designing with Nature (The Architecture Foundation). As a co-founder of Culture Declares Emergency and Writers Rebel, she curated the Paint the Land projects that linked high-profile writers and visual artists to create landscape works to address the climate and ecological emergency.
Photo Fringe invited artists to propose a single image to engage audiences and help us imagine a greener, fairer world. Artists were asked to respond to the question “How can photography make a difference to the climate crisis?"
The resulting outdoor exhibition of selected images by nineteen artists can be found on Brighton seafront next to the Upside Down House until 17 November 2024.
See all of the images together here
Created with funding from Arts Council England National Lottery Project Fund and the UK government and Brighton & Hove City Council through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. With print sponsorship from SAS Graphics.
Thanks to our judges Siân Berry, MP and Laura Summerton, Photography Manager, WaterAid.