Succession is acclaimed portrait photographer James Stroud’s attempt to capture time and craft in their essence.
It is also his first exhibition in Singapore, after having previously shown at other prestigious locations such as London’s National Portrait Gallery.
A collection of 11 unique pieces of art based on life at The Balvenie distillery in Dufftown, Scotland, Stroud combines old and new photographic techniques in a unique manner to bring his artwork to life.
The subjects for his collection stemmed from his first trip to the distillery when he took pictures for an advertising campaign. After spending time with the people and hearing their stories, he was inspired by their lives and their work and made it the subject of Succession.
“I was surrounded by flaking paint and weather-battered equipment in a place of tangible ageing, where everything and everyone was maturing and getting better with time,” he said. “My aim was to capture the sense that everything improves with age, just like a barrel of whisky.”
Using multiple cameras, all of the images are taken looking down on a scene; a grid of photographs manipulated into its final form with techniques new and old and housed in hand-built picture frames fashioned with wood salvaged from a 150-year-old church.
They’re well worth a look, if just for their aesthetic value alone. Part of the exhibition will be on display at Whisky Live Singapore on 12 & 13 November, so do check out Stroud’s stirring portrait of a distillery if you are there.
