Where families once lived, worked and played

[Donald]

I wanted to try and create a sense of desolation and isolation.

Whenever I see a ruin like this (and there are many of them across the Highlands of Scotland), I 'see' children running around the house, happy.

I'm sure there would have been times of happiness, but the reality for the families who lived in this house is that life would have been very, very tough. These people who would not have been wealthy and so much of their lives were dominated by a landlord who had all the power. Andy Wightman, campaigner and author on land ownership and use in Scotland entitled his book, 'The Poor had no Lawyers'. So true.

This image is, for me, a political statement

Your comments and critique will be welcomed.

[Daisy Mae]

The poignant reality beautifully and evocatively created, as always Donald.

I love the way the fence acts as a gateway to the image and the puddle accentuates the general mood.

I could look at this for hours and would happily have it on my wall.

[Mike Buckley]

I like the texture in all areas of the image. Does the fence make a political statement? There seems to be a halo around the chimney on the right and above the land located immediately behind that chimney.

[chauncey]

Donald, there always has been, and always will be, the poor among us.
The acts of charity we see on a daily basis are too few to help all.

[Donald]

Donald, there always has been, and always will be, the poor among us.

You say that as if it's something we should just accept. If I ever do that I might as well just lay down and die. It is something that we should be angry about. The developed world could eradicate world poverty at a stroke. The problem is that, politically it doesn't want to and that is disgraceful. There is far too much threat to the established order inherent in freeing the world from poverty.

[Daisy Mae]

You say that as if it's something we should just accept. If I ever do that I might as well just lay down and die. It is something that we should be angry about. The developed world could eradicate world poverty at a stroke. The problem is that, politically it doesn't want to and that is disgraceful. There is far too much threat to the established order inherent in freeing the world from poverty.

Couldn't agree more.

Poverty is not an inevitability . It is a structure delibearately visited on the many poor by the wealthy in order to maintain the power balance in their favour.

[madcrow]

We had it in Ireland it was called land clearance so landlords would use it for hunting. They was no thought for the poor or the misery they caused. Your image is on the money and makes a very loud statement. A very well done.

[Craigie]

I wanted to try and create a sense of desolation and isolation.

Whenever I see a ruin like this (and there are many of them across the Highlands of Scotland), I 'see' children running around the house, happy.

I'm sure there would have been times of happiness, but the reality for the families who lived in this house is that life would have been very, very tough. These people who would not have been wealthy and so much of their lives were dominated by a landlord who had all the power. Andy Wightman, campaigner and author on land ownership and use in Scotland entitled his book, 'The Poor had no Lawyers'. So true.

This image is, for me, a political statement

Your comments and critique will be welcomed.

To me it is a political statement and an excellent image. What may have aided the image in this(political statement) would have been some sheep. This would indicate that sheep were more important than people during The Highland Clearances, which there were to the ruling class of the time.

[Donald]

To me it is a political statement and an excellent image. What may have aided the image in this(political statement) would have been some sheep. This would indicate that sheep were more important than people during The Highland Clearances, which there were to the ruling class of the time.

Gary - You've probably never seen my 'Great White Sheep' image which in the linked version on my own site has some text as a footnote.

[bje07]

I like the texture in all areas of the image. Does the fence make a political statement? There seems to be a halo around the chimney on the right and above the land located immediately behind that chimney.

+1

and maybe it was impossible but I would have try to have both chimneys in the sky, the second one is less visible.
Very nice treatment.

[Donald]

I like the texture in all areas of the image. Does the fence make a political statement? There seems to be a halo around the chimney on the right and above the land located immediately behind that chimney.

Grrrrr! Need to take a little more time and refine it. It's okay on the full-sized tiff.

[Shadowman]

It does look desolate and isolated but at the same time the structure looks immense. I don't know how the tenants lived in Ireland but if similar to some areas where people shared homes with other families or even livestock then the immenseness is reduced.

[AlwaysOnAuto]

When I look at this image I see a big smudge of black just to the right of the left chimney and others to the left of it as well. Almost as if there's shadows being thrown by the clouds but not quite.

Without your text telling us what we're looking at, I'd be hard pressed to say this was a house or a small factory based on the two chimneys.

[NorthernFocus]

IMO your treatment of the scene accomplished the intended "desolation and isolation". Nicely done.

[bnnrcn]

I like the image very much, I agree with Jean about the second chimney

[Tronhard]

I agree with the theme of the image and the admire the image in its own right. The devastation to communities that really kicked in from the 18th Century saw an eviction of populations from both Ireland and Scotland. These were crofters, tenant farmers, and their families who were pushed off the land to make way for sheep as the industrial revolution's automation of the textile industry rocketed the demand for cheap cloth. Many of those found homes in, and enriched the countries of the British Empire: in particular Australia, Canada and New Zealand. The vacated buildings themselves were used for animal shelters or feed barns and many were completely destroyed.

A New Life and a New Purpose:
But the good news is that, in the middle decades of the 20th century, many hikers began to use these rough buildings as shelters, and often secretly upgraded them to make them more usable. The use of these "bothies" swelled into a movement that expanded after WWII, and this year is the 50th anniversary of the Mountain Bothies Association. In that time many crofts have found a new lease of life as bothies, and the buildings are cherished for their character and history.


A screen print from a PDF of his book showing the refurbishment of a bothy. Many are restored to match their original look, but with more modern materials hidden to view.

My partner's brother has just published a book on the bothies, charting the history and then giving the first comprehensive guide to how to use them, where they are and their characters. He is both extremely intelligent and artistic and over five years he has persevered and emerged, triumphant, with his new book The Scottish Bothy Bible, that will appear in the first quarter of 2017.

A while ago I posted a request for advice on what lens to recommend for him, as he was using a 10 year old camera and kit lens. Through the incredible generosity of one of our members who got in touch with him, he was given a high quality camera and lenses - a truly awesome example of the social nature of this forum.

[Wavelength]

I feel it

[Donald]

My partner's brother has just published a book on the bothies, charting the history and then giving the first comprehensive guide to how to use them, where they are and their characters.

I have had the privilege of seeing am electronic copy of the book. It is an amazing undertaking that deserves to be seen as a seminal work on the subject.

[Craigie]

Gary - You've probably never seen my 'Great White Sheep' image which in the linked version on my own site has some text as a footnote.

I have now Donald, what a powerful and emotive image, with the solitary sheep lording it over the land.

[proseak]

"Andy Wightman, campaigner and author on land ownership and use in Scotland entitled his book"

Donald, I think that you could produce a related book if you have more images like this...

Maybe a collaboration?