Showfield

By Sarah G Ascough, www.walklikealice.com, £35, 70 pages, soft cover, ISBN 9-781518-473807

If you’re a lover of the quirkier side of British traditions, then Sarah Ascough’s two-year project to document agricultural shows in the north of England should be right up your street. Her observational documentary style evokes memories of photographs from other great documenters of the British way of life, such as Homer Sykes, Martin Parr and Peter Dench. Like the best of documentary photography, Ascough’s black & white images not only make you feel as if you are there, but also help you understand the skill it takes to get so close but not lose the moment. When I first got this book, I was rather disappointed by the lack of background text information, but after viewing it for many hours, it’s clear that it’s the pictures that do the talking. It’s a classic combination of finely tuned photographic art and a humorous eye, making this a tome you should enjoy and keep going back to. ★★★★★