She Fights in the Fields
with Accompanying Video & Sound Piece
Guardians of the Land
A commission from Autograph and the Bagri Foundation to create a new body of work responding to critical geopolitics of our time through photography.
She Fights in the Fields is the latest instalment in my extensive series I’ll Die For You — a long-term body of work which explores climate change through the experience of small farming communities and the intimate bond between farmers and land. In this new series of photographs, I visually explore the after-effects of Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic on the mental health of UK farmers with a particular emphasis on the experience of women and the challenges they face today. The commission enabled me to explore a different direction and gendered focus within this ongoing international project, incorporating research materials relating to UK rural life, archival documents reflecting the history of political propaganda and still life photography exploring historic farming tools in the collection of the Museum of English Rural Life.
“Sometimes I get frustrated because I think perhaps the more general population doesn’t realise there are a lot of farmers out there doing a lot of good. We take our role as guardians of the land really seriously. We look after our soils, we try to actively maintain our habitat — I just feel that what we are doing is really good.”
— Rachael Madeley Davies, Farmer.
“Farming is incredibly challenging, but the joys of new life and all its possibilities outweigh the risks. None of our children are farming — they’ve probably taken the wise choice. My husband doesn’t know any different. He’s 64 next month and I’m 59 in July. We can’t go on doing this forever.”
— Liz Webster, Farmer.
“I’m so passionate to try to keep this going in the family. I also think if people like me and my age don’t get involved and stay in the industry, then who’s going to produce our food?”
— Elisabeth ‘Bizza’ Walters, Farmer.
