United Kingdom by James O. Jenkins is a
brilliant collection of portraits of people (and effigies in some cases) taking
part in traditional customs.
Photographed against a white backdrop James
Jenkins said: “Each one of my subjects was deliberately photographed outside
their natural environment. I wanted to take them away from the ceremony they
were performing in, to shoot the portrait on the spot, and equipped with a ring
flash, a portable white canvas background or a colorama gaffer-taped to an
available wall.”
Having researched the book over
two years, James shows just a fraction of the traditional customs that take
place up and down the country every year. He said: "I’ve included the ones
that I found to be most visually attractive to me as a photographer. My aim has
been to capture the culture of annual UK traditions by portraying the main
individuals involved.”
These age old customs still bind
communities and it is amazing to read about those that have been going for
centuries and ones that take place on a daily basis such as the Ripon Horn-Blower
in North Yorkshire. I loved reading about this diversity of customs, many I had
never heard of. The amount of organisation that must go into some of them is
astonishing and I cannot help but wonder what goes on behind the personas in
the portraits, how much time do those taking part spend on their act? Is this
the highlight of their year?
This book is not just a visual feast but also
a great read for anyone interested in local history and social anthropology.
The book is available here.
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