I had been directed towards examining the work of Fay Godwin by my tutor and then later in Part 2, Project 2 of EYV.
My research of her biographical details and published works is in my written notes and I will not reproduce here for conciseness.
Fay Godwin was a photographer who started her career photographing her children and then making portraits of literary figures in the 1970’s and 80’s. However her first published works were of landscapes, and it is in this genre she is most regarded.
In my research for this element, I have examined:
- “Remains of Elmet” (1979), her collaboration with Ted Hughes
- “Our Forbidden Land” (1990)
I also made a research visit to the Museum of Science and Media, Bradford (15 February 2019) and examined the archive material there. This material includes that displayed in the exhibition of her work “Land Revisited” which closed on 27 March 2011. It includes material included in her publication “Land” (1985) as well as other material. I have been able to photograph some of these images and they are reproduced here for study purposes.
I have several thoughts about the work, regarding what I have learned from this exercise.
Use of depth of field
All the images I viewed in Bradford had deep depth of field such that no part of any image was out of focus.
This was obvious in wide landscape images such as “Markerstone on the old London to Harlech road 1976”
In this image the foreground grass is shown in precise focus and detail. I assume that a small aperture was used to take the image to give such a deep depth of field, and therefore a long exposure. In other images this results in blurring of those parts of the subject which move during the exposure. This is obvious in “Stream and Birch, Glen Bheinn Sutherland” (National Science and Media Museum, 1994/5015/87) where the branches of the tree have moved and are depicted as a blur.
Godwin also used this technique in other images where other artists might has used a shallow depth of field to emphasise part of the subject. I saw this in “Carved Bench, Stourhead” (National Science and Media Museum, 1994/5015/70) where both the foreground grass and the leaves in the background are in sharp focus.
She also uses a long exposure in what might be a more documentary image “Free the Stones”. The foreground and background are in sharp focus, but the people photographed have clearly moved during the exposure. I am unclear what her aim was in producing this image, but it remains atmospheric and the blurring of the people captures their movement.
In terms of this exercise, our course notes suggest that “depth of field was also a political decision for… Fay Godwin”. She appears to use a deep depth of field in virtually all her images. In this way she depicts the entire scene and does not emphasise any one part. I would suggest that this is consistent with her answer to a question put in an interview in 2002:
“Interviewer: Your photographs are often seen as being politically active. Is there a hidden agenda in your photography?
Godwin: The viewer must bring their own view to a photograph.”
Interview by Sophie Martin-Castex (2002), transcript published on http://www.uklandscape.net/interviews/int%20godwinF.html (Accessed 17/05/2019)
Godwin sets out the scene in her image and allows the observer to make of it what they will. Nonetheless her choice on subject and viewpoint determine what she wants to show to the observer.
Compositional technique
The wide depth of field she uses allows the use of foreground objects and features to contribute to the composition. This is the case in images such as “Reedy Loch” where the detail of the reeds attracts the eye to the foreground.
Other compositional techniques I was aware of was the use of patterns in the landscape revealed by the lighting which make an interesting image of a wide panorama of moorland. Examples of this include “View from Duffdefiance, Glen Buchat” (National Science and Media Museum, 1994/5015/74) where patterns in the vegetation provide light and dark on the otherwise featureless moor.
Similarly in “Haven Hill, Bradbourne” (National Science and Media Museum, 1994/5015/72) the angle of the light has emphasised the path erosion and provided lines across the hillside.
Sparse use of darkening of the sky
Godwin presents her images with a very naturalistic feel. The tonal quality of the skies is very natural and with a few exceptions is not darkened. These exceptions provide dramatic contrasts such as in the image of “Abel Cross” (National Science and Media Museum, 1994/5015/2)
Andrew Procter 
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