Worthing: A Portrait

About

"This body of work is an ongoing exploration of Worthing; the town I call home. As a documentary photographer, I use a blend of landscapes, portraits and interiors to examine the layers of place, memory, and identity that shape this coastal community. My approach is rooted in quiet observation – capturing the subtle contrasts and overlooked details that reveal how the past and present coexist in everyday spaces.

What defines a town? Is it the buildings, shops, and restaurants, or the parks, playgrounds and swimming pools? I believe a town's identity lies not just in its physical form, but in its rhythms, its stories and the people who inhabit it. Through my work, I aim to uncover Worthing's history, culture, and contemporary realities, allowing the ordinary to emerge as something extraordinary when we truly stop to look.

I draw inspiration from photographers like Eugène Atget, Walker Evans, and Humphrey Spender – figures who documented place with clarity, care and human insight. Like them, I strive for a humanist perspective in my photography: images that are honest, unembellished and quietly intense.

This project began when I moved to Worthing, but my connection to the town runs deeper. Though I didn't grow up here, my grandmother lived in Worthing during the 1940s, and my father was born here. Now, as I build a new family life in this town, I use my camera to observe, reflect, and connect with both its physical and human landscapes. Worthing is a place of layered experience, home to lifelong residents, returning locals, and families with deep generational roots. My work is an attempt to honour that richness while carving out my own place within it. This is not a finished story, but an evolving one – told slowly, through attention, curiosity and care".