2020 FESTIVAL EXHIBITION

Out of the Blue

Part one

Saskia Coulson & Colin Tennant

A person is sorting scallops into a bucket on a fishing boat.

Out of the Blue was a year-long photography project that explored and documented South West Scotland's commercial seafood industry. 

The work documents the people, places and environments that support and shape locally landed seafood around the Solway Coast.

Seafood has sustained the people of southern Scotland for the past 10,000 years and is still an integral part of local and rural life. However, the industry is often misunderstood or ignored.

A fishing trawler out at sea. A lighthouse on a small island in the distance.
A fisherman is standing on a trawler looking at the dredger coming out of the water.
Two fisherman pulling in the scallop dredger on a trawler out at sea.

This body of work provides an important record and offers an insight into the lives of those working within the industry.

The work aims to raise awareness and understanding about locally caught seafood and the important role it plays in supporting and sustaining rural economies and communities in this overlooked corner of Scotland.

This series of images were created onboard ‘Susan Bird’, a scallop boat skipped by Steven Girgan and based in the town of Kirkcudbright.

Buckets full of scallops sitting on a fishing trawler. Many other containers and nets are scattered around.
A fisherman holds an open scallop in his gloved hand, whilst standing on board a fishing trawler.
Fishing trawler Susan Bird out at sea. Three fishermen are bringing up the scallop dredger.
A fisherman holds and guides a raised scallop dredger on a fishing vessel.
The lowering of the scallop dredger on a fishing vessel. The sun is setting in the distance.
A fisherman standing inside the cold room storage of a fishing vessel surrounded by bags of scallops. The light is dim.
A fishing vessel out at sea as the sun is setting.
The Susan Bird fishing trawler on the sea at night. Two fishermen are looking over the side of the boat at the scallop dredger.
Looking out of a window on a fishing boat as the sun is setting.

About the artists

Coulson & Tennant are an award winning photography and filmmaking partnership who use visual storytelling to create artistic, documentary and environmental work for a wide range of clients and organisations as well as personal projects. To do this, they collaborate with many different communities and individuals and draw inspiration from historical, creative and ecological references.

Website: www.wearectproductions.com
Instagram: @c.t.productions



Ob 1 Web
2020 FESTIVAL EXHIBITION
Out of the Blue 

Part two

Saskia Coulson & Colin Tennant
view exhibition
Illustration of a grey heron by Lisa Hooper.
2020 FESTIVAL EXHIBITION
Where are the birds taking me?
Lisa Hooper & Ken Cockburn
An Astrid Jaekel retrospective.
2020 festival exhibition
Retrospective
Astrid Jaekel