Grateful Citizens! reflects on the labyrinthine spaces of the museum’s archive as a site to consider authenticity in relation to autobiographical narrative, the history of photography, recollection and touch. Fore-grounding this is the River Tay, the historical context of David Morrison’s architectural design and the enduring legacy of T.H. Marshall (a former provost whose passion for Georgian architecture transformed Perth from a medieval burgh to a modern city) on the “grateful citizens” of Perth. The narrative weaves together the story of Effie Gray, born in Perth (and the young wife of John Ruskin) with a surprising discovery of how my own experiences studying at The Glasgow School of Art intersects with her life. I consider ways in which my long-term studies in photography help me understand how the objects in the museum’s collection act on me historically, intellectually, emotionally.

Exhibited at Perth Museum and Galleries (2018), Alchemy Film & Moving Image Festival (2019)