We briefly caught up with Paul before his current exhibition ends and managed to talk to him about photography and his exhibition – Brick by Brick.
116: How did you first become involved with photography?
Paul: Most of what i know is self taught and i became interested when i built my own darkroom. I found it to be a hobby and escape route. I was given an old rangefinder camera and then moved on to 35mm.
116: Is this the longest project you’ve undertaken in photograph so far?
Paul: Yes, it is my longest and first full-blown exhibition.
116: So, we probably don’t need to ask, but i’m guessing you are a Stoke City fan, was this a personal project?
Paul: I took the photographs as a labour of love, i had so many memories i wanted to document. My son sat on the wall at the boothen end, and i wanted to capture those memories. It’s been 17 years since the Victoria ground was demolished and i thought it was a good time to show it.
116: How did you capture the photographs?
Paul: All the photographs were taken on 35mm film and i’ve now scanned and transfered them to digital files.
116: There’s a mixture of black & white and colour in your exhibition, and i’ve also noticed some spot colour, why did you decide to include this process?
Paul: I thought the spot colour fitted with the theme, it was transfering from the old to the new and i hope it portrayed that with the colour.
116: What feedback or opinions are you hoping for from this exhibition?
Paul: It will be interesting to see the remarks, i have a book that visitors can leave their comments in.
116: Do you have any future plans for future projects?
Paul: It was suggested that a book might be made. I would also like to show the Britannia ground and continue the transition.
