When writer, broadcaster and fellow Hastings resident Michael Smith told me a few months ago about visiting St Clements caves, underneath the West Hill, it was quite a story. He’d visited the caves as part of a feature for the brilliant independent magazine Get Hastings. Fast forward a few months later and he and Beth King (the editor of the magazine) had come up with a whole 45 minute film inspired by the caves, but which delved further into the wider “esoteric underbelly” of the town.

New Drumz Of The South book is here. Read an extract on UKF

Photos from XMTR x Sono Electro

Thanks to XMTR, for inviting me to photograph one of their curated days at Sono Electro, a sound and audio festival in St Leonards on Sea. I enjoyed the diversity of performances and stories and as ever, it was great to be involved in such a brilliant event in my local community.

5 Years of GD4YA

This year is a special one for me with several anniversaries, including 20 years of my Drumz Of The South project and 5 years of GD4YA.
GD4YA, the record label founded by Sam Levo, is dedicated to releasing the authentic sounds of South London via artists like Benny Ill, Karma, Yaw Evans and El-B. The label draws inspiration from the rich musical heritage of the area, particularly the dark garage and early dubstep scenes that emerged from places like Streatham and Croydon.

2nd Edition Drumz Of The South Book Announced

SHIT SHOW: SOLO EXHIBITION, APRIL 25TH-28TH

SHIT SHOW

NEW WORKS BY GEORGINA COOK

Coming to Electro Studios Project Space, St Leonards on Sea

25-28th April 2024

Photos from Hastings Strike Action

Here is a selection of photographs from Strike Action in Hastings on Feb 1st. Hundreds of striking teaching staff, cleaning staff, DWP & NHS workers and more came out joined the rally from Hastings Pier to the Observer Building, to ask for better pay and conditions.

Hastings' Growing Bass Music Community

August was a particularly good time for bass and 140 music in Hastings and St Leonards.

Events, Music, DocumentaryGeorgina Cook14 September 2022The PiperWheel Up, Hastings, Bass, Music, Sound-system, culture, red, live, events, photography, event, DJ, MC, Jungle, Dubstep, 140, dance, crowd, Bunch

Photography from Sligo, Ireland - Land of Heart's Desire

Taken in May in County Sligo, the project began as an exploration of my heritage via my Great-Grandfather Joe Neilan, but quickly instead became about how the landscape, mythology, folklore and stories reflect my own inner world

Web Content, Photography, DocumentaryGeorgina Cook1 September 2022update, web, Ireland, Irish, design, Sligo, Yeats, mythology, desire, folklore, stories, roses, faeries

Bottle Alley

It was being in and around one spot watching people of all ages walking and running past me, or sitting on near by benches that I enjoyed the most; a group of young people sitting chatting about COVID, a toddler attempting to join their conversation, before being swooped up by their mum, an older man taking photos on his phone, kids being kids and of course the obligatory dogs and seagulls that are just as much part of the community as the humans.

Printing My First Photobook

10 days ago, I had a mega exciting & nerve-racking 12 hour day at DG3 printers in Kent where the Drumz Of The South book was litho-printed! I learnt a lot about the process, such as the fact there are 300,000 variables for each print. Litho is an analogue process involving aluminium plates, buckets of Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black ink, water, oil & even a tiny bit of alcohol. Tis the season after-all.

Hastings Rally For Refugees

On December 11th, the Hastings community came together to show solidarity with refugees, migrants and asylum seekers. Hastings is a coastal town overlooking The Channel - the treacherous bit of sea that many people cross or attempt to cross, often in small dinghy’s. It’s an issue that is often in the news, due to the tragic deaths of many people as they try to cross the channel, but also due to the attitude of the UK government towards these crossings, and towards migrants, refugees and asylum seekers in general. I went to the rally to show my support, but also to document some of the MANY people in the town, that are also in solidarity with refugees. The message is clear, Hastings supports refugees!

Photos from Boiler Room at Three Mills Island

A few of my favourite photos from Boiler Room at Three Mills Island last Saturday.
A return to collective joy with camera...the music was amazing and the vibes were nice and warm.

Drumz Of The South: The Dubstep Years (book)

This week I launched a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign to fund the printing of 1000 copies of my first ever photobook - Drumz Of The South: The Dubstep Years (2004-2007).

New Series, FOR THE TIME BEING (Lockdown Diaries).

FOR THE TIME BEING is a series of images taken throughout the various lockdowns we’ve had here in Hasting, some of which you might have seen on my Insta or in a previous blog post. Hopefully the series gives you a sense of the stillness and sometimes emptiness of this peculiar time, plus the new kind of intimacy with home and locale that so many of us had.

Hastings Lockdown Diary- a daily photo diary

Lockdown 2.0 started for the South East of England (including Hastings) last week.

While I took quite a few photos from the last lockdown and even got featured on the brilliant Shutterhub, this time I’m aiming for greater discipline and consistency.

So I’ve set myself a challenge to take & post at least one photo per day from my camera (not my phone) throughout Lockdown 2.0.

Makeup & Mirrors: Behind the Scenes with Ocean All Over

These photos are from behind the scenes with Ocean All Over at The National Centre for Craft & Design in Sleaford in September. I was there to document the company’s two socially distanced performances on the lawn in front of the centre - you can find all of those photos on the special Ocean All Over page in the Navigation menu.

Mr Eazi & Young Zilo Boiler Room event photography

A couple of weeks back I had the pleasure of capturing some event photography for Boiler Room x Ballantine’s True Music In The Round. This was the first proper socially distanced live music event that I’ve documented since the pandemic so it felt really exciting to be in among the action again.

Ocean All Over in Bristol

It’s great to back (safely) documenting & photographing people and projects again, following peak lock-down.
Last week I went safely to Bristol (truly one of my favourite city’s) with two of my favourite people & long time collaborators- singer-performer-writer Breezy Lee & poet-MC Sgt.Pokes, plus the multi-talented Alex Rigg of Ocean All Over.

Shutter Hub

Recently, I entered two of Shutter Hub’s online exhibitions including Working From Home and am proud to have work selected for it. As so many photographers have been stuck at home for weeks now, it’s a particularly well timed subject. The images that I contributed were shot just a few weeks ago, including this one of my poor husband, who’s legacy will forever now be partly related to him lying in bed with his laptop.

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