Woodland Sanctuary

Trees and Woodland of the North York Moors

Woodland Sanctuary is a joint exhibition between photographers Simon Baxter and Joe Cornish. The work was gathered over five years, all of it within the North York Moors National Park. 

For both photographers woodland has been a source of exploration, tranquility, meditation, artistic study and inspiration. Throughout the pandemic it was also a place of a solace. The photography has been made in the eyewitness tradition of the medium, which is to say that the photographs are a faithful record of the scene before the camera.

One obvious restriction that arose from the pandemic was the inevitable necessity of staying at home. But no travel created an opportunity to explore the local area more widely and deeply. For Simon Baxter that was more or less an extension of his existing practice. For me, it was a chance to deepen the local emphasis I had taken years before, but with a growing focus on woodland.

In our different ways this converging concentration on woodland had happened almost simultaneously. Simon's injuries had led him into the woods as a solace and relief from persistent pain. For me it was a growing fascination with trees and forest driven in part by increasing alarm about the environmental crisis. Whatever our motivation we both found therapeutic value and artistic inspiration among trees. It wasn't until May 2019 when we were comparing notes via email that Simon kindly suggested sharing a location he'd discovered. It turned out I had walked through the same woodland the previous month with friends, and was intrigued to join him. It was the first of many shared excursions.

The work we had done before, and still the majority since have been solitary trips, as is usual in landscape photography. But increasingly as we exchanged pictures and ideas there was a sense of solidarity and shared inspiration. The coming of the pandemic accelerated the process (for me especially) as the distractions of more distant travel evaporated.

We recognised that while our work was distinct, the similarities were based on a shared value of respecting the appearance of things as they really are, photographically-speaking. And this attachment to visual reality is the philosophical basis for the exhibition, and for this slim book. The work is made in what some call: the Eyewitness tradition. There is always a degree of translation and interpretation in photography. It is not reality after all. But the sense should be that what we saw could have been seen by anyone else standing next to the photographer in that moment.

Natural woodland, forest and trees are no longer taken for granted by policy-makers and corporations. Countless books have appeared about them recently revealing their scientific details, community relations, their cultural and evolutionary importance, their endless utility to humans etc. They are recognised for the critical role they play in the biosphere, and in our wider culture. In this new atmosphere of interest in and understanding of trees it seemed our own fascination for them was timely.

The Inspired By gallery at Danby Lodge in the North York Moors seemed the perfect place to hold an exhibition focussing exclusively on the woodland of this wonderful regional National Park. We are so grateful for the opportunity to show this exhibition here.

This book is its hand-held equivalent. It is a record of the pictures and words from the exhibition. It also contains a few pictures for which there was insufficient space in the gallery! Arranged in a series of artistically inspired themes, we hope the photographs convey a sense of joy and wonder, and sometimes other complex emotions that can be triggered by looking at trees, and walking through the woods.

Joe Cornish, June 2022