The meditative process of creating images to understand the world around me often exceeds the importance of the final image itself. Throughout much of my artistic practice, I have used the medium of photography to explore the way we interact with our environments. In 2021, lockdowns resulted in a move to my hometown by the coast for 12 months, the first significant amount of time spent there in 10 years. This resulted in an ongoing attempt to create a tapestry of imagery that honestly document the many facets of this small, sleepy coastal environment, amidst a newfound respect for the beauty of a place that has come with a change in personal values. It has been equal parts an examination of my own relationship with Encounter Bay, as it is a canvas for a photographic study, constantly looking inwards where the process of creating the work is more important than the work itself. Taking influence from the new topographic and new objectivity movements, ‘The Caravan’ acknowledges the need to document my home town amongst a rapidly changing cultural and economic environment. For two years I dedicated the practice of regular walks throughout Encounter bay, always trying to find a different street I hadn’t walked down, or walk at a different time when the light would be falling at a different angle and intensity. During this time, the real estate of the once working class fishing village, exploded exponentially. As homes and rents grew to levels exceeding the financial capacity of a large proportion of the inhabitants, it seemed the process of gentrification rapidly excelled, and many aspects of the community were at risk. The broader project (Hart Avenue) considers the relationships we have with where we have grown up, the way in which these shape us, and the way in which our perspectives change over time. ‘The Caravan’ attempts to explore the less polished reality of life in small coastal communities, which is critical and central to the vibrant culture of these places.