Concrete Island Discs (2011–ongoing)
Each week, BBC Radio 4 mysteriously renders distinguished people and celebrities to desert islands. No mention is made of an electricity supply, never mind a recliner. Playing even one of their favourite records would be as likely as finding the tenacity to luxuriate in the Bible or Shakespeare.
By contrast, being marooned on Concrete Island is plausible. Potentially imminent. Your vehicle punctures at high speed—or pehaps you swerve to avoid the erratic driving of a fellow motorist. Out of control, you smash through a dilapidated guard rail, and plunge down a steep bank of earth. You wake to find yourself immured in a triangular pit beneath precipitous concrete: the urban motorway intersection. Despite a fractured leg and punctured lung, you plan your escape. But—having read JG Ballard’s book—you know it is hopeless. You have six bottles of white burgundy in the boot. Luckily, you’ve downloaded thirteen pieces of music to your phone (which now has no signal) in anticipation of this moment.
Photograph made on Iflord HP5 5x4 sheet film in 2011.
Limited edition fibre based black & white silver gelatin prints:
Please consult my Buyer’s guide for detailed information on printing, delivery, and returns. If you have any further questions, please get in touch.
My current Concrete Island Discs playlist is available on Spotify.