Jill Cole

Jill Cole is a British photographer who both lives and works in North Yorkshire

Cole came to give a lecture about the project she has been working and producing art work for. The project is called Photo-canopy which is in conjunction with the National Forest. The idea of the project is to produce images/artwork to reflect a moment in time as the forest evolves and communicate that to others.

Cole wanted to be involved with the project to build a coherence in her portfolio, further emphasising her own style.
Cole mentioned a few facts about the project; in 1995 there was 6% woodland cover, they hope that by the end of 2012 18% of the National Forest area will be covered in woodland. She also mentioned that over 200,000 people live within the Forest.

Before starting work for the project Cole researched the area, she started in March 2011 and found a complex and diverse area with many strands she could follow. "How much is it about the trees?" was something Cole repeated within her lecture, she commented that trees are just the spine of this project saying "change, time, layers, diversity, multiplicity, coexistence, conflict, catalyst, incomplete, embrace" are all other aspects of the National Forest that Cole mentioned to research. The main points that Cole focused on through her work were; change and conflict in Landscape and also how we have to intervene to make things natural again.

Cole usually prefers to use a Mamiya 6x7 film camera, however for this project she experimented with the use digital photography, using a Canon 5D Mark ll. Initially she planned to use the digital camera just to document the unknown area so that she knew what she was working with. Once she had completed the research she decided to carry on using the digital format as a means of creating her work. Cole thinks of what she wants to say and then finds a way to visually communicate that to a viewing audience.

Here are some examples of my favourite of Cole's work. The Birds work was not part of the NF project however I think it is some of Cole's Strongest work.

 

This is a brief description, taken from Cole's website about her work on the birds. I find the best things about these images are the narrow depth of field and strong colours. I like the focus on the wire mesh which really brings the idea of being trapped and relating that to war, being trapped in a situation where you are in danger. Another thing I really like is the detail within the image, how each feather of the birds can be seen. Some images of the birds were blurred, showing them struggling to get out of the net an although this is a record of what happened, I believe it isn't as effective as an image.