Living off-the-grid on the Isle of Tanera Mòr

In 2012, photographer Kevin Percival packed up and moved to the Isle of Tanera Mòr – a remote, other-worldly shelter based off Scotland’s northwest coast.

As a part of the island’s tiny, periodical population, he lived and working there seasonally (eight months on, four months off) for a total of two years, surrounded by breathtaking landscapes and never out-of-sight of the sea. At times, he was one of just five people staying on Tanera.

Since then, he has returned for “at least a few weeks every year” as part of an ongoing photo series that sees him documenting the off-grid, faraway existence of the island and the different people – much like himself – that visit and leave their unique mark on it.

“I grew up in rural Derbyshire and I think that’s probably the single biggest influence on the photography I do,” Percival explains.

“I’ve always felt quite passionate about rural issues – both the environmental and the socio-political. Scotland became a second home, it’s the most truly wild-feeling corner of the UK: like where I grew-up, times ten.”

Titled Tanera (Ar Dùthaich), the project – which is showing in an exhibition at London’s Hotel Elephant space – entangles portraiture with distinctive shots of the island’s shapes, forms and textures, all captured – à la Chris Killip, Paul Strand – in black and white.

Framed as a “portrait of a place”, the work operates as a window into life on Tanera. From the wry smile of a young fisher, to the rock formations that long predate him, Percival traces the past and present of a place unlike any other, joining them together as one.

“Making a project about the island drew me in, because it was such a tiny area – but so full of history.”

“You can really see it written into and onto the landscape. Peat cuttings, evidence of previous fires (wild and man-made), buildings, graves, and fields – all remain visible hundreds of years after the original creators pass on.”

Tanera (Ar Dùthaich) is showing from 1 – 31 March, 2017 at Hotel Elephant.  

See more of Kevin Percival’s work on his official website.

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