Tanya Ahmed
30 years of photographing the urban built environment and I’m still exploring and awed by the urban spectacle surrounding us. Permanently based in New York City but frequently bouncing across the Atlantic, photographing the streets and structures of the two environments stokes my sense of identity and belonging on both sides of the Pond.
Not glamorous architectural, Becher objective or social documentary my photography is a heavily subjective, cumulative approach tying experience, culture and physical structures together. With a focus on texture, colour and light there is still nonetheless a clear and important representation of location based reality.
Walking around Oxford, decades after my last visit, was both a journey of reconnection and discovery.
Over the weekend I encountered the city in transition.
During the day human activities played out in front of an attractive urban backdrop as locals, students and tourists became my focus.
At night as the streets emptied, the dark shadows, empty winding alleys, cobbled stoned roads, tall encompassing walls and solid stone buildings plunged me back into medieval times.
Glimpses of modernity: a bicycle, traffic markings, bollards, electric light tried but failed to bring me completely back to present time.
Until daytime and its people emerged once more.
Not glamorous architectural, Becher objective or social documentary my photography is a heavily subjective, cumulative approach tying experience, culture and physical structures together. With a focus on texture, colour and light there is still nonetheless a clear and important representation of location based reality.
Walking around Oxford, decades after my last visit, was both a journey of reconnection and discovery.
Over the weekend I encountered the city in transition.
During the day human activities played out in front of an attractive urban backdrop as locals, students and tourists became my focus.
At night as the streets emptied, the dark shadows, empty winding alleys, cobbled stoned roads, tall encompassing walls and solid stone buildings plunged me back into medieval times.
Glimpses of modernity: a bicycle, traffic markings, bollards, electric light tried but failed to bring me completely back to present time.
Until daytime and its people emerged once more.