Black Kelp Kaikōura / Pōneke - 2024

Black Kelp Kaikōura / Pōneke - 2024 – Limited edition of 19, printed on Aluminium

For James Watkins, the environment is a mirror. His creative world is not one of pristine surfaces, but a celebration of the "broken-in", the folded corners of a well-loved book, the scuffed edges of a suitcase, or a sun-faded cover sliding across a dashboard amongst driftwood and stones. 

"I can relate more with tarnished objects... I like that they have a story, have been lived in and used and read, not just gathering dust as a prop on a shelf."

This appreciation for the weathered is rooted in a life lived close to the elements. Twenty years ago, a sense of "irresponsible freedom" led James to hitchhike through Golden Bay, eventually living in a house bus near the mystical shores of Wharariki. His practice remains an extension of those solitary walks through wild storms, a way of "feeling out" the shifting pressures of the land, sky, and sea.

James’s devotion to Photography began with a visual epiphany during an ANZAC dawn ceremony in his teens. Struck by the silhouetted forms of veterans against a rising sun, he felt an urgent need to capture the moment. Today, his inspiration is found in the raw textures of the natural world, the colors of kelp, the architecture of mountain ranges, and the silent narratives of the New Zealand bush.

His work is a votive offering to the landscapes he calls home; a quiet documentation of beautiful things as they are found. Whether sitting in the morning sun with a coffee or standing on a windswept beach, James Watkins reminds us that a terrible beauty is always waiting out there for anyone willing to make the effort to look.

Size: 60x40 cm
Material: Ink Print on Aluminium
Print edition: Limited edition of 19