Taking Time consists of a series of images taken along St Catherine’s Pier, photographed predominately during the period of the first and second coronavirus lockdowns. The series is a photographic documentation of the highly popular pastime of fly fishing, which occurs frequently along the Pier as a recreational pursuit.
The series consists of observational portraits of different fisherman engaged in the process of fishing, sequenced together with carefully composed landscape photographs which observe and document different spaces and areas along the Pier. The images work together in narrative form highlight the idea of fishing as being a highly contemplative activity whereby participants can pass time in a state of quiet solitude.
Through this visual representation the viewer is invited to examine how recreational processes such a fishing allows for a temporary escape from the normal pressures and demands of everyday life, offering the necessary time and space in which to think, reflect and contemplate. At the time these images were taken, amidst the first few months of the COVID-19 pandemic, a time of overwhelming uncertainty, stress, and fear for everyone, serves as an important and timely reminder of how important and beneficial this sense of escape is.