Behind the Scenes is a FotoStory commission from Sussex-based food and beverage company Elite Fine Foods to show ‘a day in the life of’ the business and to champion the individuals working there.

The work was shot in a documentary style over several weeks to capture authentic moments, alongside a series of studio and environmental portraits combined in a diptych. The portraits were captured in a participatory way, unleashing the creativity of team members, with participants selecting symbolic objects to hold and choosing backdrops to represent their work.

The work is being used internally on available wall space at the premises as well as in brochures, publications and on social media.

“The FotoStory team has fulfilled our objectives with superior image quality and has made the project an wholly enjoyable experience for everyone. They have a unique way of engaging creatively with our workers, and blend seamlessly into the background when it matters so the day-to-day workflow can continue.” Tim Lee, Managing Director

© Poppy Berry / Nina Emett

Art of Vision is a FotoStory commission to interpret artworks on the walls at Southlands and St Richard’s Eye Clinics, part of University Hospital Sussex NHS Foundation Trust in Adur.

The exhibition takes the viewer to the confluence where art, mathematics, science, cosmology, philosophy, and vision cohere and collide, and is a thought-provoking, visceral, and uplifting work.

It is a visual exploration into the compelling evidence that there are ordering principles which govern the universe, validated by complex mathematical sequences and formulas, coupled with deep scientific investigation, which underpin deterministic laws inherent within nature’s patterns.

We thoroughly researched the complex notions within the works, curating images into cohesive sets and providing coherent text to reveal their meaning in way which is accessible to visually impaired audiences.

© Masoud Teimory

In His Slipstream is a FotoStory commission about a family of novice sailors who cross the English Channel in memory of Laury – their son, brother, cousin, nephew – who was passionate about sailing.

Beset by mental health challenges, he tragically took his own life in July 2020.

The work shines a light on the charity Blue Spirit set up in Laury’s honour, which grants sailing bursaries to young people experiencing a mental health challenges.

With this moving pilgrimage, on board Pelangi, Laury’s family set sail from Itchenor Harbour in Southern England to Port Blanc in Northern Brittany, where Laury grew up and first learnt to sail. They seek to viscerally experience Laury’s passion for sailing; to connect the two lands of his heritage; and to create as much impact as possible in his slipstream through Blue Spirit.

This photo essay has been screened & exhibited at Whirled Cinema London, Forum Cinema Hexham, Tyneside Cinema Newcastle.

© Nina Emett

Stories of Moving Lineage is a multi-media arts and heritage project devised and co-curated by FotoStory and London College of Communication for Salusbury World Refugee Centre and supported by National Lottery Heritage Fund. It is based on the memories of refugee families since their arrival in the UK some 20 years previous.

Oral histories of family testimonies were collected and interpreted through animation, film, photography, and motion graphics by academics and students within the Design School at London College of Communication.

An interactive exhibition premièred at the Victoria & Albert Museum and a theatre production by Scarabeus Aerial Theatre, created as another dynamic strand of the project, launched in the performance space at Willesden Library.

“Stories of Moving Lineage is an ambitious multi-media project. We’ve been fortunate to partner with outstanding specialist organisations and it’s been an opportunity to capture remarkable stories of families we’ve worked with, making them accessible to large audiences. We’re delighted with the quality and variety of the artwork – it will have a long legacy and an important role in humanising stories of hope and resilience and influencing attitudes to migration and identity.” Sarah Reynolds, CEO Salusbury World Refugee Centre.

© Saumya Mittal

Everyday Heroes is a multi-media project created through a collaboration between FotoStory and London College of Communication for BNP Paribas, which focuses on the ways they are combating climate change in the UK; how they are supporting clients to do the same; and shining a light on community, educational and individual initiatives that the Bank champions.

The work focuses on clean and renewable energy sources from the sun, wind, water and earth. We meet everyday heroes working in a wide variety of fields including green investment, environmental policy, sustainable transport, tertiary education, engineering, retail and community energy.

This dynamic work seeks to educate and inspire through showcasing solutions to the environmental challenges we face and contains a compelling call to action at its heart.

FotoStory co-curated an exhibition with London College of Communication within the central atrium of BNP Paribas’ Marylebone offices, which served as an interactive communications piece to its 5,000 resident staff, as well as its clients and stakeholders.

“Using the FotoStory service is an inspiring way to communicate important issues, directly engaging our staff, clients and stakeholders in the CSR work the company is doing – it is certainly more effective than an Annual Report!” Anne Marie Verstraeten, CEO and Country Head of BNP Paribas UK

© Luca Sage

Empowering Women Entrepreneurs, created and curated by FotoStory, is a photography exhibition and campaign that highlights the work of Lendwithcare, a micro lending & business training initiative of leading aid and development charity CARE International UK.

The photo essays feature inspiring women from five of the countries where Lendwithcare operates including Ecuador, Pakistan, The Philippines, Zambia, Zimbabwe. Local documentary photographers were commissioned to produce the work, where possible, leveraging their knowledge of local language and customs.

Women are disproportionately affected by poverty and yet are key to development. They are often the change agents of the family, investing in businesses and spending a greater proportion of their income on the welfare of their families. The visual stories illustrate how entrepreneurship can lift women out of poverty, providing lasting social and economic change.

“Engaging the FotoStory service has brought a much greater level of specialist knowledge, skills and creativity than if we had commissioned the photography ourselves. The imagery is of a very high quality and has helped to promote the work we do, playing a key role in increasing the number of loans UK lenders make to women in the developing world, which is our ultimate aim.” Tracey Horner, Head of Lendwithcare, CARE International UK

© Ana Caroline de Lima

Sustainable Transport is a FotoStory commission from Isle of Wight Council showcasing environmental modes of transport on the island through a documentary photo essay.

It represents a move by the Local Authority to create travel behaviour change amongst residents accessing employment and education, and visitors, seeking to entice people away from vehicles propelled by fossil fuels and towards using more sustainable modes of transport.

The work showcases a variety of alternative transport options and approaches including electric vehicles, bicycles, car clubs, buses, scooters, and it also promotes the environmental and health benefits of walking.

The FotoStory service was used to create artworks which support the Isle of Wight Council’s online and print marketing and campaigns.

“We LOVE the images – thank you!” Joanne Sedgmond, Communications and Campaign Officer, Isle of Wight Council

© Murray Ballard

One Planet City was conceived, commissioned and curated by FotoStory in partnership with Bioregional and Photoworks and supported by Arts Council England.

Selected and commissioned from an open call, ten UK based photographers created ten photo essays in response to each of the ten principles of One Planet Living, a sustainability framework created by Bioregional and adopted by the city of Brighton & Hove – the first city in the world to embrace such an initiative. The final artworks were installed in ten public access venues across the city, including at Brighton Dome, Hove Promenade, American Express Community Football Stadium, alongside many other significant sites.

This extensive multi-partner  project won a “People Environment Achievement” (PEA) Award in 2015.

“FotoDocument makes positive social and environmental initiatives visible through world-class documentary photography installed in high-profile public spaces. It’s wonderful to see the arts used in such a positive way and not locked up in galleries. The variety of locations for One Planet City was incredible for both the accessibility – on the seafront, at the train station, in the open market – and the fact that collaboration would have been required with every sector in the city.”

Oliver Heath, Sustainable Architect/Designer, Judge of PEA (People Environment Achievement) Awards

© Amanda Jackson

For FotoStory’s inaugural project in 2012 – FotoEnvironment – we worked with our venue partner Southern Rail to curate 8 photo essays about positive environmental initiatives from around the world over a 12 month public exhibition run.

Each photo essay focused on a different environmental issue, ranging from recycling & waste in Australia, collaborative green farming in Havana, energy saving buildings in Seattle and green brick technology in Bangladesh.

We installed two works at a time at Brighton Railway Station on a 3 month rolling programme and reached a daily footfall of 27,000 train users. The works then toured to other stations in the south-east network including Lewes and Bognor Regis.

Through the partnership, FotoDocument was able to exhibit the artworks in high-profile public spaces introducing non-traditional audiences to its work, as its founding principle.

“It’s been an exciting year for Brighton Railway Station with the exhibition bringing even more character and interest to an already bustling station. Southern Railway has benefitted from the association with a well respected Arts Council England funded organisation, which has a high quality product with the power to draw in new customers for us. The partnership has allowed Southern to promote its environmental credentials and to reach and engage with new communities.We know that our passengers and visitors have been enjoying these sensational works of art at many of our stations in the south-east of England.” Sarah Evans, CSR & Partnership Manager at Southern Railway

© Khaled Hasan