This work is from a series of photographs that I took of an abandoned Gypsy site to the East of London in 2006, some remnants from which also provided the material for my wooden sign installation titled Copse.
The abandonment of the site had clearly been the result of an eviction. The area contained a number of caravans which had been stripped of their outer layer of recyclable metal to reveal the wooden structures and the insulating materials beneath. The unsettling landscape gave the impression of a battlefield in the aftermath of conflict – a quiet after the storm. The desolation of the scene contrasted the bright day with its intense blue sky.
In post production I enhanced the colours of the composition to emphasise similarities to seaside postcard scenes where impossibly blue skies tell of an unattainable dream of joy and leisure.
The title of the series underpins this contrast. The contrast between the attractively colourful composition and its dark content is intended to generate questions about the nature of the landscape and the events that occurred there.