Cumbrian photographer Juliet Klottrup is showing six stunning images as part of the new Blackwell exhibition – Class, Covid & Cumbria.
Here she talks about what inspires her work and how it feels for her photographs to be on display alongside pictures by the legendary Joseph Hardman.
Juliet Klottrup
How would you describe your photographic style?
My work examines the emotional connection between people and place while gently searching for the extraordinary in the seemingly ordinary. I am keen to preserve a document of youth, landscape, community, rurality and tradition centred around my local environment.
The Benson family, Grasmere by Juliet Klottrup
How would you describe your six images in the exhibition?
They are a portrait of Cumbria encapsulating; love, hope, isolation, kindness, stillness, creativity and resilience in this extraordinary moment in time. As we move out of pandemic restrictions, it is important to record and preserve personal Cumbrian Covid experiences.
Erin and her horse Pandora by Juliet Klottrup.
How did you find the subjects for the photographs?
Beyond the dominating landscape, the Cumbrian identity and experience is diverse and varied. I travelled the length and breadth of the county talking to people about their experiences over the last year. There were stories of love, hope, loss, isolation, humour, kindness, stillness, creativity and resilience throughout this extraordinary moment in time.
The impact of routines meant postponed weddings, graduations, new crafting, the second cancellation of Appleby Fair in its history, home schooling and for some there was ‘lambing to be getting on with’.
How does it feel to have your work hanging with Joseph Hardman’s at Blackwell?
Hardman’s body of work is a very important documentation of Cumbrian life.
I recognise in some of his works, lives and landscape that overlap with my own history to the area as my mum’s side of the family are six generations Penrithian born and bred.
I am proud to be showing a representation of recent history through my lens alongside his recognisable recordings of the past.
Radiologist Ismat by Juliet Klottrup
Class, Covid & Cumbria (runs until 22 February 2022) is a community inspired exhibition exploring the stories of Cumbrians during the pandemic. It features work by Grayson Perry, Rosie Galloway-Smith, Joseph Hardman, Juliet Klottrup and Lakeland Arts’ MEND project.
