Wood Photography

On a musical and pleasure seeking pilgrimage… during Las Romerias de Mayo festival in Holguín. The Spirit of the Revolution series documents the generation of Cubans that saw the dramatic changes of 1959 as young adults. They have a strength of character and underlying humour that transcends the struggle that has defined their lives. James Sparshatt went to Cuba in 1999 and was so taken with the island and its people that he returned 15 times in the following 7 years. His images are largely of the music and dance and innate rhythm of the island but he also found himself drawn to an older generation that had been old enough to understand the revolution in 1959, that lived through 40 years of tumultuous and often difficult times and who now watch with some bemusement the return of the outside world in wave upon wave of tourists. James Sparshatt’s photographs of the “Revolutionary” generation of Cubans capture their grit and indominatable spirit. The black and white portrait photograph...

Te veo… I see you. Matanzas 2005. The Spirit of the Revolution series documents the generation of Cubans that saw the dramatic changes of 1959 as young adults. They have a strength ...

A man of gentlemany demeanour, content with his cigar. A sentinel watching the world pass amidst the endless sugar cane country of central Cuba. The Spirit of the Revolution serie...

The old country girl from the Escambray mountains. I was hiking in the mountains, close to Trinidad, when I met the family. They invited me in and we chatted about our different live...

Las Memorias… sitting on a rocking chair in Viñales watching the sunset and thinking of life. The wife of a tobacco farmer, a strong woman of generosity and humour lost in thought w...

Black and white portrait of a Cuban musician called Dagoberto. Dagoberto began playing his guitar in the Casa de la Trova in Holguin, Cuba, in 1944. Sixty years later in 2004 I had ...

A lady of pure joy… dancing in the Plaza de la Revolucion on May 1st. The Spirit of the Revolution series documents the generation of Cubans that saw the dramatic changes of 1959 as...

The Atlantic Ocean stretching out from Dingle. In Irish folklore Brasil was believed to be a phantom island lost in mists that appeared once every seven years but could never be reac...

A tobacco farmer from the Viñales valley in Cuba. In 1959 residents of Cuba were faced with a stark choice: stay on their island home and live as a “revolutionary” or leave. Some believed wholeheartedly in the new beginning, some were willing to be carried along and some abandoned everything they had and chose exile. The Buena Vista social club found fame as much for their incredible spirit as for their music, but for me it is the everyman that you meet on the street, cigar clamped between teeth, a glint in the eye, that embodies the true spirit of those who have lived through 50 years of struggle. James Sparshatt’s photographs of the “Revolutionary” generation of Cubans capture their grit and indominatable spirit. The black and white portrait photograph...

June Lake on the Eastern Escarpment of the Californian Sierra Maestre range. Hours before sunrise the frozen lake was buffeted by winds. The ice cracked and ...

A moment of pure joy in Holguín, Cuba, during las Romerias de Mayo festival. James Sparshatt’s photographs of music and dance capture the emotion and intensity of people lost in the...

The Nubra Valley is part of the Tibetan plateau. It is an arid landscape surrounded by awesome peaks, a high altitude desert inhabited by a few small Ladakhi communities and their ...

Sparshatt Dalzell is a collaboration between photographer James Sparshatt and painter Rachael Dalzell. Puro... Alegría #III - a portrait of Graciela an icon of old Havana. The po...

A frozen morning in the highlands of Scotland and the sun battles to emerge from the mists. James Sparshatt’s black and white landscapes have an ethereal beauty. They are moments w...

Aodh is a god of the underworld and prince of the Daoine Sidhe in Irish mythology. The crashing waves in this cave made its legend as a gateway to the realm of the Gods entirely u...

Just after sunrise the mists disburse to reveal a panorama of pagodas stretching across the Bagan valley in Burma. Drifting slowly in the almost imperceptible breeze a flotilla of h...

Rolling waves crashing against the breakwater in St Monan’s calmed by a long exposure after dark. James Sparshatt’s black and white landscapes have an ethereal beauty. They are mom...

The Nubra Valley is part of the Tibetan plateau. It is an arid landscape surrounded by awesome peaks, a high altitude desert inhabited by a few small Ladakhi communities and their ...

The Skellig Islands are off the coast of Kerry in Ireland. Once the home of reclusive monks they have gained notoriety recently as a retreat for Luke Skywalker… Lit by moon light reflected off the Atlantic Ocean swell they portray a calm at odds with the often stormy seas that batter them.. James Sparshatt’s black and white landscapes have an ethereal beauty. They are moments when the natural form of topography is given magic by the transient touch of the elements. The work is also available as a smaller archival giclee print and as a collectors edition Palladium Platinum print. Archival print on 300gsm Hahnemuhle rag Edition of 15 Dark wood frame with UV clarity glass Framed size 96cm x 72cm (38″ x 28.5″) Signed by the artist Certificate of Authenticity from the gallery Country: County Kerry...

Each day the students at the School of Spanish Dance in Havana strut and twirl and leap across boards tin dance studios hat have seen better days. The da...

Lake Sillustani sits at over 4000m above sea level in the high altiplano of Peru. Overlooking the lake on a raised plateau a series of tall Incan Funerary towers dominate the lansdca...

A woman of Santiago de Cuba. The Spirit of the Revolution series documents the generation of Cubans that saw the dramatic changes of 1959 as young adults. They have a strength of character and underlying humour that transcends the struggle that has defined their lives. James Sparshatt went to Cuba in 1999 and was so taken with the island and its people that he returned 15 times in the following 7 years. His images are largely of the music and dance and innate rhythm of the island but he also found himself drawn to an older generation that had been old enough to understand the revolution in 1959, that lived through 40 years of tumultuous and often difficult times and who now watch with some bemusement the return of the outside world in wave upon wave of tourists. James Sparshatt’s photographs of the “Revolutionary” generation of Cubans capture their grit and indominatable spirit. The black and white portrait...

The Viñales valley in western Cuba is a place of stunning beauty where perhaps the finest tobacco leaves in the world are grown. The tobacco farmers live hard but proud lives. The S...

The bearded one… in Old Havana. The Spirit of the Revolution series documents the generation of Cubans that saw the dramatic changes of 1959 as young adults. They have a strength of...