FROM ENGLAND WITH LOVE
The project
In 2011, after spending four years in Edinburgh, Scotland, I moved with my family to Bristol in the west of England. A new photographic exploration began. Aimlessly, I intensively photographed various visited places. Then, on a rainy day, as I was editing my work, I realised that I had the start of a photographic project.
Usually my projects start with observations, intuition, and feelings. While editing my photos, I had the impression that England is a country with significant social contrasts. I observed that from one environment to another, social mix seemed low, and consequently, these enclosed places within communities conveyed a culture, social codes and behaviours specific to a particular social category.
Based on this observation, I selected places and environments according to their social and cultural categories.
Weston Super Mare is a seaside resort frequented by the working class.
The Cheltenham horse racing and the Somerset agricultural fair convey a conservative and countryside culture.
The City of London represents progressivism, liberalism, conservatism, modernity, and the era of Thatcherism.
The St Paul's neighbourhood, through its carnival, represents a popular and multicultural England.
On the side of these series, I added various photos taken in city centres.
Starting from the cultural and social differences of these environments, I then wanted to juxtapose the images taken to confront these candid moments of life and create a personal portrait of England.
The title
The title "From England With Love" refers to the expression typically added to the back of each postcard. The title also reflects England at a specific moment in its history. Each of these images could be seen as postcards telling their own stories while the entire book constructs an image of England in the early 2010s.