Sean Bulson Photographic

"I have never been able to think about the individual separate from society. The individual is always living some larger narrative, whether he or she likes it or not." Stuart Hall (interview, The Observer)

Statement

Sean uses varying degrees of abstraction to achieve a strong formal and graphic image. Responding to modernist photographers (Bernd & Hilla Becher, Lewis Baltz, Andreas Gursky) and artists (Piet Mondrian, Dan Flavin) his photography combines sociological references, with a coherent and often idealistic approach.

"I'm no more a classical documentarist than landscape or architectural photographer, but I'm fascinated by the structures that influence, and to varying degrees shape, human behaviour. Those that reject the importance of social and economic factors tend to emphasise the 'sovereignty of the individual': 'man' as a free agent, responsible for his own actions. This position ignores important determinants however, such as law, ethics, education, economy; and more transparently, the physical infrastructure that governs our movement, and the nature of the public spaces within which much interaction takes place."

The structuralist method that Sean adopts takes reciprocal relations as its object of investigation, rather than particular factors considered in isolation. His photography depicts (or reflects) these structures that, while they may not determine human behaviour, often provide the context within which it takes place.

"To focus only on the aesthetic can lead to an unreflective perspective (and a form of escapism via an idealised image). While there's a place for this, there's also a place for a more critical approach, connecting to philosophical ideas that add insight and understanding, taking you beyond aesthetics, and into the realm of meaning."

[Note: Statement quotes are from an article in the RPS Journal.]