Until relatively recently life in rural England would have been very different from how it is today. Full or partial self-sufficiency would have been common, fixing and re-using would have been a necessity, waste would have been minimal. That is, however, a bygone era. Consumerism obliges us to continually modernise instead of adapting what we already possess or purchasing second-hand. People who do not live like this are unusual.
I’ve known Nanda all my life; for as long as I can remember she has lived in her cottage in a small Somerset village, with a vegetable patch in the garden and chickens in the run. She has a symbiotic relationship with her garden; inflicting as little damage as possible and reaping the rewards. This creates its own challenges, particularly at the age of eighty-six. Nonetheless, Nanda remains resolute in her practice.
The decision to photograph Nanda grew out of a personal fascination with alternative ways of living, and a growing desire to separate myself from modern life, albeit occasionally. Included with the images are fragments of conversation and various memories which Nanda has shared while we’ve been working together. The series reflects my understanding of Nanda, and an aspect of the British rural identity which will too soon be ascribed to history.
Bio:
Holly Passmore is a British photographer based in the South West of England. She is a final year BA honours degree student at the University of Plymouth.
She is fascinated by cultural variation and the ways in which people live. Her photographic practice frequently examines the relationship between humans and nature and other contemporary social issues which are explored through constructed and documentary approaches to photography.
