About
It all started with a trip to the Tutankhamun Exhibition in Dorchester as a child.
I’d grown up in the historical city of Bath, my mother a historian and my father a musician and artist. History and culture was a normal part of my life, my parents taking us to countless museums, galleries and heritage sites.
But, something ignited in me that day.
I remember being blown away by the beauty of the treasures, and by that instantly recognisable, distinctive style that dominated the ancient Egyptian culture for three millennia.
Fast-forward a few years to my early teens, and to a trip to see the Lindow Man at Manchester Museum.
I remember just standing and gazing at him, captivated by him; by the fact that I was face-to-face with a real person from 2,000 years ago. It was an encounter that inspired such awe and respect in me, and a feeling of real connection with the past.
My fascination with all things ancient culminated in me moving to Liverpool in 2001 to study for a BA in Egyptology, followed by a postgraduate diploma. It was a big move for me. I was 25, and had a good life in my hometown of Bath. But something inside me told me I had to do it; that it was of the utmost importance.
And it was. What I didn’t know then, was that it was the doorway to a whole new life.
I met my husband in my third undergraduate year, and decided to make Liverpool my permanent home.
Inspired by my husband’s photography, I got my first digital camera in 2013 and fell in love with taking it on visits to museums.
In May 2015, I was diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome; an illness embedded deep in your immune system that leaves you feeling constantly exhausted.
With no treatment, the only advice my doctor could give me was to pace myself. So, I did what many others have done to try to find peace in a difficult life: I turned to creative practice.
I found that photography allowed me to look at the world in a different way. To frame it, to understand it, and to observe it better than I could otherwise. It absorbed me in a way few other things do, allowing me time to myself, to not think about the troubles of the world.
I found photography soothing and mindful, and I was able to keep going with my limited supply of energy longer than I normally could.
So, in late 2016, I began a personal, therapeutic project, photographing artefacts at the Garstang Museum of Archaeology in Liverpool.
Those early images – in particular, some I made of a statue of Hathor – led to curator Dr Gina Criscenzo Laycock inviting me to work on exhibitions at the Garstang. It also led to me developing a photographic style rarely seen in archaeology and museums. One that’s more artistic and stylised, and about letting every object tell its own story.
I light each piece in its own way, using the play between light and shadow to bring textures and shapes to the fore. To let each one speak in its own way. To highlight the details and the craftsmanship involved in its creation that can so easily escape notice.
In particular, I like to use a macro lens to photograph tiny, hard-to-see objects so often crowded into museum cases.
In stark contrast to usual artefact photography, I take all context away from the object. I remove the background, and make no reference to size. I leave it floating in its own space, thus allowing you to consider each piece in its own right.
My style is often reminiscent of the deep shadows and partial, directed lighting you would have encountered in an ancient Egyptian temple. And of the duality seen in ancient Egyptian culture and beliefs. But the play of dark and light, and of overlooked details, is also a personal reflection of the life I’ve lived, and still live. Of the darkness of isolation that chronic illness to can force upon you, broken up by the light of finding a passion and a place in life.
Want to know more?
Interested to find out more about how I photograph artefacts, to see some of the exhibitions and projects I’ve worked on, or if you’re wondering where the hell I got the name ‘Tetisheri’? Then click on the links below to keep exploring.
Artefact photography
Read the stories behind objects I’ve photographed.
Projects and exhibitions
Museum exhibitions and personal projects.
Who was Tetisheri?
Find out more about the Egyptian queen Tetisheri.