Ghost Town, Orepuki, New Zealand, 2008

Some of your photographs, devoid of human subjects, nevertheless convey a human presence. Could you explain how this notion plays out in the Watchman series?

The idea first started a long time before I went on the trip. It was supposed to be about the guardhouses and only the structures, but it developed into something else during the trip because, while photographing the structures, I saw those amazing watch guards and their own personalities.

Throughout images of seventeen different countries, one is hard pressed to find a proper landmark in your show. Could you explain your decision to eschew geographical signposts?

I guess it’s not that important for me where I am geographically or to show that in my photographs. It’s more about showing how unified places are around the world and not making them so exotic. You can see interesting places just around the corner or in Africa. I think by looking at my photographs people could either question where [the place] is or imagine this imaginary world that includes all places.

The product of a vision honed from “looking in windows, glancing behind walls and hanging out in empty lots”, Continental Bounce finds beauty in the structural and mundane. A compelling case for contemplative trailblazing….