For many years, we have supported final-year BA Photography students at Nottingham Trent University with three bursary awards: two awards of £500 each (granted to Eleni Georgiou and Mackenzie Hall) to support the production of their degree show, and a third award of £1000, intended to fund the production of an exhibition one year later.
We are thrilled to announce that the recipient of this year’s £1000 bursary is Evan Day, for his project Chewing on Bark.
Evan’s work stood out to us for its presentation and technical quality, and the confidence of its visual language. There was a maturity to the way the project was put together that really impressed, and it was clear it had been approached with a thoughtful, discerning eye.
Chewing on Bark is a continuing project of mine that focuses on the people and landscapes that exist within the rural setting I call home. Exploring the relationship I have with my family felt like a necessity when accurately documenting where I live, as I spend the majority of my time with them. The images themselves navigate intimate moments with my mother, as well as time spent with my brother, delving into themes of emerging adulthood and the transitional period we are both experiencing as we come out of our adolescent years. Further areas photographically investigate the lives of local villagers, churches, and the physically demanding life of farmers, all of which have longstanding ties to the community.
I plan on using the bursary to create a show with work I will be shooting during my time studying at London College of Communication for my MA in Photojournalism and Documentary Photography. This body of work will look into the industrial decline of Stoke-on-Trent, as well as high rates of poverty and other issues that fall under crime and social concerns.
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