Trench Line
The Western Front of WW1 had a trench line that went unbroken from the coast of Belgium to the French Swiss border. This 770km Line is my journey on foot in 2023.
Walking is both Ancient and Contemporary. It is the exploration of the Landscape at its most raw level. The connection through “Walking the Landscape” is immediate and both physical and emotive. It is also a method of meditation.
Sally Mann stated, “that the battlefields are imbued with great power. They are sculptured out of the death of the men that died on the fields. They fought to the death… but now all are gone.”
As Mann did on the Civil War Battlefields of America, I want to explore through photography the Echo of Death in the landscape that is realized in the unpeopled emptiness and look at the concept of Loss and memory held in its place.
Technical note: This project’s stills will be shot using Analogue equipment. Images taken on panoramic Xpan Hasselblad. A digital camera will be used for visual diary.
Personal note: My Grandfather served with the New Zealand Infantry on the the Somme and then worked in divisional headquarters through the rest of the war.