The great painter, JMW Turner painted widely, including my home county of Kent, at a time when the age of sail was coming to an end and as the era of coal fired steam ships was ushered in. It’s a pivotal, turning point for humanity in terms of how we engendered a sharp rise in environmental destruction from this time onwards.

My project, In Search of Turner, is about my experience of identifying an artist I liked and adapting his style and approach to painting and applying it to my photography of my local area.

In Turner, I found inspiration in how he captured both long passages of time and movement as well as fleeting, more sharply defined, glimpses of light. From great swirling seas and skies to the split second a storm sends shafts of light down onto a landscape, Turner gave me a creative road map to follow in approaching my photography of Kent.

I think, if we cherish the landscape, we must also hope to change the world for the better. But like the mighty oak tree, the humble acorn comes first.

By applying our creative skills and minds to the landscape around where we live we can hope to promote greater attachment and value to the environmental asset it comprises. For only if something is truly valued, and valued more highly than the profit derived from its exploitation, will it’s loss be truly feared.

I hope my project demonstrates how looking at the work of other artists and their interpretation of our nearby landscape offers valuable insight and ideas for producing fresh and original photography of our own.

In turn, if we share our work on social media, with local newspapers, community magazines and environmental initiatives it can become a significant contribution to the fundamental need to create a sense of value of the environment. We can only hope that this engenders a broader will amongst us and our children to support action that tackles climate change in meaningful and sustainable ways before it is too late.