James Walker

James Walker is a photographer who having been born and raised in Ayrshire still lives and works here. After a career in the police, James retired early from the service in 2018 to follow his lifelong passion for photography.

"I have known Carolann for longer than it is polite to say. When I set myself up building a new career as a photographer I started a personal project to try and promote my work. I didn't want it to be just about me as an ego thing, I wanted to support other people at the same time. “Ayrshire Folk” began as a celebration of businesses in my home town that had survived the Covid Pandemic. So many did not, I wanted to help in some small way.

I love old photographs that capture people in their own place. Images that tell a story and preserve a little bit of history. Carolann invited me to the launch of the Lost Villages project in Cumnock as she knew it would be right up my street. I knew she worked for the CCLP but I confess I did not really know what it was.

I was there purely as a guest but as always had a camera with me. The event was fantastic with lots of fabulous old photographs and even more fabulous real people. Carolann introduced me to the authors who kindly agreed to a picture for the Ayrshire Folk Project. I then got talking to two former miners, Jim and Willie, their stories were great to listen to.

The thing that really came across in spades was their passion for the community that had been devastated by the loss of the coal industry. Even though it had been forty years since the great miners strike there was clearly a great deal of emotion still burning. I did not know at the time that Jim McMahon was now deputy leader of East Ayrshire Council. I did know for sure that if any men deserved a place in the project it was Jim and Willlie.

When I asked them if I could make a portrait of them they looked bemused and could not think why I wanted to. That humility combined with the sense of service sealed the deal for me, I didn’t want to leave without them.

I pointed to the pictures on the walls and said that everyone in them was probably thinking the same thing. It is very rare that I can have an explanation so readily to hand. I told them that it tickled me to think that one day, maybe in 50 or 100 years, someone might be really glad I captured a picture. I will never know but I love the idea.

I'm delighted to say that they both agreed after that. The lighting in the room was for the displays on the wall not for photography. It was a great gallery setup but very dim on the floor. We had to move to find enough light as I dislike flash, especially on camera flash which is all I had with me.

The resulting images are quite stark and gritty but I think all the better for that. Tough men who toiled hard underground and are still toiling hard in the often harsh light of public opinion. The hard light and deep shadows have an echo, for me at least, of what it must have been like in a mine. Catching some of the pictures in the background also gave them a real sense of place.

I used them in a blog post. That both Carolann and Jim loved. I think that was the moment that inspired the time capsule project.

I was invited to submit a bid to photograph the 22 projects and write a bit about each one that would serve as a marker for the future. I am absolutely delighted to have won the bid and to have been part of this incredible series.

The people I have met and the projects that have made such a difference to the local community have been truly inspiring. Projects have already grown beyond initial expectations and inspired others as spin offs. People have stuck with it because they have been supported, nurtured, encouraged and helped financially to achieve things that they see are important for their neighbourhoods.

People are filling in the gaps in services and creating facilities that Government often does not see and could not tailor anywhere near as well as the people who are actually involved can.

The most striking thing I noticed while collecting content for this project is that the people involved seldom spoke about the money. To them it was the support and network that really mattered.

The money is obviously very important but whether it came from the lottery, wind farm community funds, the government or individual trusts, the important factor was that it was not accessible without support. There is lots of money about and it is absolutely intended to improve life for local communities. The rightfully stringent management of funds makes them hard to navigate and harder still to access. It is often impossible without a structure and the right people in place.

The CCLP brought that knowledge, helped form those structures and supported the people in the process. The importance of that support can never be understated.

This time capsule has been an absolute joy to work on, especially as these projects are planting the seeds of an economic and social revolution. This is nothing less than an incubator for the rebirth of an incredible area with a rich cultural, historical and industrial heritage. Thank you for allowing me to see and capture this moment and the people behind it, this has been a real privilege.

My hope for the future is that these projects continue to grow and achieve the change they aspire to. It will be absolutely fantastic if when the time capsule resurfaces it inspires another spurt of growth, that would be incredible.”