This work is about Dartmoor and the daily experience of it. Contemporary rural life is often characterised by dispersed communities. The distances between services, places of residence and work, are increasing year by year. I wanted to represent this aspect of rural life, acknowledging the presence and graphics of roads as an integral part of the landscape.

Ten people gave me their daily or regular journeys. Many of these were to/from work, or whilst working. Some were on foot (tractor, horse) most were by car. I filmed these journeys and broke them down into individual frames and sequences.

I wanted to try to evoke the feelings of these journeys, the small details one notices, as the season and light changes. The pleasure that reaching a certain point might give you. I examined the sections that interested me, teasing out tiny sections, compressing others.

There is a distinct visual difference between journeys made by foot or from a car. Speed changes the scale and distance visible. Sound become more significant when walking, the intrusive presence of helicopters. I only did these journeys once between October and February this year but felt very lucky to have these glimpses into the routines of people who live on Dartmoor.

Dartmoor seems to occupy a very specific cultural place as a region in the nations cultural consciousness; one that transcends its designation as a national park. Dartmoor is a distinctive geological and cultural region, with its own climate, and landscape.
Perhaps because of its remoteness from London, it’s high security prison, or its place in fiction, it seems to be a place of fear for those unable to be on their own.