Thursday the 12th of December will see the launch of Solas, a major new magazine which celebrates the best of contemporary photography in Scotland by those who live and work here, or have connections to Scotland.

Solas is the Gaelic word for light and illumination, and perfectly encapsulates the role of the magazine – to draw attention to both new and established photographers who live and work in Scotland or have connections here.

This is reflected in the first issue which includes work by Scottish Photographers, such as the contemporary photographic Icon Robin Gillanders with his portrait series Ten Men, or that of Simon Crofts whose The Land of Endless Expectations gives an insight into the lives of those living across Russia.  Renowned English photographer Paul Kenny shares his unique Scottish Landscape work Fragile, while Romanian Photographer Laura Tiliman shares the fashion photography which is rapidly establishing her as an emerging talent.

Jen Wilcox shares her lonely images of St Kilda from her series Hiort, while Mat Hay’s ambitious images from ‘The Messenger’ share a dark underworld where messianic figures lead their followers to commit tragic acts.

The first issue also hosts a portfolio by Niall McDiarmid, whose Crossing Paths Portrait series has resulted in a best selling book, and much critical acclaim.

Aside from innovative photographic work,  the magazine contains a large essay ‘Seeing the Light’ by Street Level Curator Malcolm Dickson which shows just how vibrant and exciting contemporary photography is in this country.

Edited by Alex Boyd, himself a widely acclaimed photographer who has worked with figures such as Rankin, Solas seeks to finally give a voice to what is one of Scotland’s most exciting art forms, and to share this with an international audience.

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What:
Highland Print Studio is working in partnership with Cape Farewell to deliver an exhibition of contemporary visual art called Sexy Peat, celebrating the ecology and heritage of the Lewis Peatlands in Scotland’s Outer Hebrides and highlighting the significant role that peat plays in global climate regulation. Led by Lewis artists Anne Campbell and Jon Macleod, the project will also celebrate the Gaelic heritage relating to the bog and the significance of the bog to the people who have lived with it.

Why we like it:
Beyond their initially austere or barren appearance, the peatlands reveal an abundance of colour, texture and life forms in constant interaction with dynamic weather systems. These features have inspired the people who have lived with the moor for generations. This project will investigate and celebrate that land, those people and their heritage.

Sexy Peat is part of the Year of Natural Scotland, a partnership between EventScotland, Scottish Natural Heritage and Creative Scotland.

The artists commissioned for Sexy Peat are: Anne Campbell, Jon Macleod, Kacper Kowalski, Deirdre Nelson, Murray Robertson, Paul Slater and Alex Boyd.

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Alex Boyd with his portable camera, Downpatrick Head, Ireland

For several years now I’ve been working as a photographer specialising in historic processes such as wet-plate collodion. This is one of the earliest ways of making images and was first invented in 1851 by Frederick Scott Archer.

Den Bruiste Sea Stack, County Mayo, Ireland

This process has the slight downfall that it requires you take your studio with you, with enough chemicals, supplies, water and materials to make images wherever you are working.

Alex’s portable studio

It currently takes a car to move my studio from one location to another, with little room left once the camera and my darkbox are packed alongside me. If I’m working inside, in a dedicated studio space, or an improvised one such as the vaults of Stirling Castle, then making images is fairly straightforward, as long as there is an ample supply of light and water, and the chemicals such as silver nitrate are behaving themselves.

Inside the darkbox, portrait on tintype

Louise Boyd

Working outside in the landscape however brings a whole new set of challenges, difficulties and frustrations, however it is probably where I most enjoy working with this process. Setting up my portable darkroom, in effect a large wooden box in which I can work in the field, I need to contend with high winds, rain, snow and intense heat and in the case of a residency on the Atlantic coast of Ireland I undertook earlier this year, all of these within a matter of hours. Difficult locations also mean that you have to drag all the gear to where you want to make images, sometimes a back-breaking and laborious task.

Alex’s studio, WW2 bunker, Downpatrick Head, County Mayo, Ireland

Scottish artist Hugh Loney

To date I’ve worked across Ireland, Scotland and England with my darkbox, everywhere from Rannoch Moor up in the Highlands, to the ruins of several Second World War clifftop bunkers in County Mayo in Ireland. Working in this way allows me to completely immerse myself in each location, due to the slow and methodical approach to image making, with each plate taking 15 minutes from the moment I pour collodion on the glass, to the final development using potassium cyanide.

Darkbox, camera and chemicals in studio

I’ve been asked many times why I persevere with collodion photography, especially given the difficulties in producing images using chemicals and the need to bring so much equipment with me. The answer is a straightforward one – it perfectly complements the way I make images. I found that with film and digital my approach was slowing down and becoming more contemplative, and that I was investing more time into each individual shot. This of course does change with the subject, however for landscapes I would say that my pace at the moment is fairly glacial.

Cashlanicrobin Rock, County Mayo, Ireland

The approach also produces distinct images. Aside from collodion’s unique aesthetic, each image is a moment in time recorded on glass, not just the scene before me, but every flaw and imperfection which goes into making that image. This can range from chemicals producing chaotic and unexpected results, to blades of grass from the side of Loch N-achlaise or midges from Glen Etive trapped forever in the collodion like amber. The corner of every image also contains my fingerprint from where I held it during its creation, a marker which signifies that I was there.

The Old Tree Graveyard, Ballycastle, Ireland

Alex Boyd is currently the RSA Artist in Residence at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig in Skye.

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‘Where I Make’ invites readers behind the scenes of artists from many disciplines to share photographs and a little insight about where they create their masterpieces. See more from the series here.

Sonnets is a collection of around 100 works taken in some of Scotland’s most remote and remarkable locations. The series is an ambitious project by Alex Boyd, taking a a single rückenfigur (back figure) and placing them in some of Scotland’s most distinctive & stunning locations.

As well as receiving countless awards & accolades for Alex, the body of work has also inspired other creative works such as a film by director Michael Prince shown in the 2011 Glasgow Film Festival and a collection of songs by Mike Garson, best known for his work with David Bowie.

More: Website | Behance | Flickr

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