Spirit of Place seeks to encounter location not through description but through feeling: the mood, light and detail of places that linger in memory more than words can capture. The series moves away from the conventions of travel literature and guidebooks, which often impose narration or fixed meaning, and instead proposes photography as a primary mode of experience where rhythm, texture and atmosphere speak more eloquently than explanation.

Every landscape, alley, coastline or interior visited becomes both subject and interlocutor. The ancient idea of genius loci, the spirit inherent in place, suggests environments possess an essence to be sensed rather than explained. In Spirit of Place, each location carries its own distinct atmosphere, so what is captured in one series may differ in feeling, colour and tone from another. Photography becomes a form of dwelling where lingering in textures, rhythms and ephemeral detail reveals presence rather than delivers account.

The project continues the ethos of attention over spectacle and nuance over declaration. This visual method aligns with photographers who place feeling above clarity and intimacy above grandeur: Joel Sternfeld’s expansive road-trip and landscape work gives depth and context to everyday human environments¹; Martin Parr’s humour and saturated observation of the everyday shows how meaning often lies beneath the surface²; Wolfgang Tillmans’ sensitivity to mood, light and social nuance reveals place as felt as much as seen³; Elger Esser’s contemplative landscapes transform the ordinary into meditative experiences⁴. In this lineage, Spirit of Place treats each location as unique, shaped by its own genius loci, where the subtle, the tentative and the suggestive become central to meaning.

Spirit of Place invites viewers to dwell with locations, to notice what remains partial or suggestive, and to bring their own reflections into conversation with the images. The books in the series are designed to be tactile and portable, offering companions to journey, memory and personal note.