A significant influence on my photographic work has been the New Topographic movement, in particular the work of Lewis Baltz. As an undergraduate of Fine Art at Newport College of Art, I was shown Baltz’s photobook Park City (1980) by my tutor Keith Arnatt. This book served as a primer for my photographs of southern California in that the formal language of Baltz’s work and his concern with the mundane, non-picturesque qualities of a subject established my aesthetic.

My own work does not adhere to the conceptual rigour of Baltz’s methods, instead my survey of San Diego is seemingly haphazard combining everyday features with quirky observations. This archive has become a source for inquiry rather than a clear statement of fact. Subjects that seem ordinary in southern California, such as the ubiquitous palm tree, become signs of the extraordinary in my recording of this topography.

Published by Café Royal Books.  
Edited by Craig Atkinson.  
First Published 2019.  
Edition of 150.