I have a sensitivity for all things made of metal and the function and beauty of industry. 'Elephant' is part of a set of lithographs called 'Ghost Series'. Some years ago I made a comprehensive photographic record of disappearing industries. Britain’s status as the world's most powerful trading nation and victory in the First and Second World War relied on shipbuilding, steel and coal. There is little evidence left to mark the significance of this - also the situations, structures and cultures that combined to support and drive this contribution.
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I reworked my original negatives using a very personal process designed to celebrate these phantom echoes of our recent past. With Elephant I added moths wings – these symbolise the soul of the crane and the industries and people and skills and community that were shaped by the integrity of the labour and toughness of materials and process.