Picture Imperfect
Mandy Barker talks to us about how she is using her artwork to fight plastic pollution
PENALTY - The World, Mandy Barker
Q. Tell us about your path into environmental photography.
I have always been interested in art, and while I was working as a graphic designer, I maintained a keen interest in photography. So, I decided to take a part-time course in photography to see if I could progress from an amateur photographer to professional.
Q. What led you to the creation of images using plastic?
When I was studying my MA Photography course, we were asked to photograph in a way we hadn’t worked before – for me, this was taking photos in colour, and by shooting objects out of context inside a studio – this was when I first chose to photograph marine plastic debris. I often visit a beach near my home town of Hull, and over the years I have seen the shoreline become littered with objects including a computer, a child’s car seat and a lawn mower. I wanted to find a way to let other people know what was going on in the ocean – photography became my way to do this.