Following curiosity...

I was in a discussion with a group of friends the other day. Somebody said something that really struck a chord with me. He said - the moment you start losing your curiosity about the world is the moment you begin your decline towards old age and cognitive decline. In other words, curiosity is the thing that keeps you engaged in the world and feeling young.

The moment he said it my thoughts went immediately to the creative journey I am on as a photographer and how it is teaching me to look at the world with a curious eye. When I have a camera in my hand I definitely find I look at the world in a different way. I’m curious about the way that scene looks, about the way those people are interacting, about why that building looks odd juxtaposed against another, about the story that sits behind what I am looking at through the viewfinder.

I also find myself a little bolder, willing to walk into an area that I haven’t been before, or even might have avoided going to before. It’s not about taking risks, it’s just about being curious about what I might find.

One of my favourite contemporary photographers is Magnum’s Mark Power. I love the way he captures the essence and story of places through his pictures and I particularly like his “Good Morning America” volumes. As he travels around each of the states in the USA Mark captures a sense of both what life is like outside the gloss of the big cities, but his powerful images capture perfectly the fraying of the fabric of the American dream.

It was these images that I had in mind as I explored the town of Spartanburg, South Carolina. I was there to drop my son off at college (you’ll recall from previous posts) and to be honest the college scene there is about all the town (or city as they call it) has going for it. That and the fact that it also the corporate HQ for Denny’s, the ubiquitous American diner chain.

But what Spartanburg did have in abundance was pictures and scenes that triggered my curiosity and reminded me of the aesthetic that Mark Power has so beautifully captured in his work.

And so I found myself letting my curiosity take me to places where I had never been before. Some of the images I’m sharing in this post reflect my wondering around the city centre - fascinated by the stories that some of these old buildings and streets had witnessed since the area was first settled by Scots-Irish and German immigrants in the 1750s.

But my most compelling images came from exploring an old railway yard and adjacent disused cement works. I was struck by how accessible these industrial spaces were compared to the UK - though I quickly realised this accessibility comes with real risks. Walking on active railway tracks was frankly dangerous and probably illegal, but it provided a visceral reminder of America's industrial heritage. The experience was surreal - standing where freight trains regularly pass, surrounded by the remnants of heavy industry.

These industrial landscapes sparked exactly the kind of curiosity my friend had talked about - that willingness to explore unfamiliar places and question the stories they hold (safely, of course!). And hopefully a little bit of Mark Powers influence can be felt in what I have captured.

I hope these pictures spark your curiosity. I’d love to hear your thoughts so please do leave a comment or re-stack. Bye for now.