Photographer Siân Davey reminds us to look close to home for inspiration

Upon sharing her screen, photographer Siân Davey told us she was going to be detailing her living philosophy to her practice as an artist, “and that’s really deeply informed by my personal history,” she explained. In fact, her work is solely influenced by her history. What followed was a talk outlining the trajectory of her life, from being perceived as a problem child, born to parents with long-term chronic mental health issues and living in homeless shelters until the age of 13, to a fine art painting degree, then a 15-year-long career in psychotherapy and finally to her photographic practice.

It was fascinating to hear how this at times tumultuous progression has impacted on her work, and she employs this influence in her practice documenting her family. Primarily, this takes the form of two concurrent series, Martha and Looking For Alice, which document her daughters. What Siân’s talk revealed was the importance of being introspective as a creative, of looking closer to home (or even inward) in order to understand more about yourself, your loved ones and the wider world.