Yesterday evening at Stills in Edinburgh, Document Scotland photographers Jeremy Sutton-Hibbert, Sophie Gerrard, and Colin McPherson, and guests Arpita Shah and Margaret Mitchell, presented new photography work to a packed house, answering questions and generally having an enjoyable evening of photography from Scotland.

First on the floor was Sophie, introducing her new work The Flows, which takes a look at the management of the UK’s largest peat bog in the north east of Scotland, and the conservationists who manage it. Arpita led us on a brief trip through a few of her projects all of which look at Asian women, the diaspora and her own family and their journey through India, Kenya and Scotland. We were treated to a look at her new work ‘Nalini’, a project which will be on show at Street Level Photoworks in Glasgow, as of this Saturday, Feb 9th.

Jeremy Sutton-Hibbert presented images of the political demonstrations and marches that he has been photographing these past few years in Scotland, but started the talk with a few similar images from Romania in 1991, and Japanese demonstrations in 2003-2012, showing the threads and seams of work that run through his extensive archive.

Colin McPherson introduced ‘Edinburgh Unchained’ work of Stephen McLaren who sadly couldn’t make it along, talking to the Edinburgh crowd of the history of their city and how it benefited and profited from slavery and the end of slavery in the Caribbean, and the compensation paid to UK slave owners.

Margaret Mitchell silenced the crowd with her very thoughtful presentation of work about her own family, shot over 20 years. The projects, ‘Family’ and ‘In This Place’, provoke questions concerning options in life and how these are tied to the places you’re born, the society and families you’re born into, and the economic pressures which come to bare. You can read an interview with Margaret Mitchell about her work on our site here.

Colin rounded off the evening with a lovely presentation of his new work from Easdale Island on the west of Scotland, an island he has a 30-year history with, but through photographing there in recent months has rediscovered a new love for the place and and the people that live there.

Many thanks to all who came, for your thoughtful questions and also, much thanks to Ben Harman, Rachael and the staff at Stills for helping facilitate the evening.

The Document Scotland work on show yesterday evening can all be seen on the walls at the Martin Parr Foundation in Bristol until March 16th. Following that the work will tour to Scotland.

See more information about the show and the press release here.

Martin Parr Foundation
316 Paintworks
Arnos Vale
Bristol
BS4 3AR

Gallery opening times
Wed to Sat, 11am – 6pm
Sun to Tue, closed

Free entry to all exhibitions.

Touring exhibition dates