Dogs in Cars by Martin Usborne

Martin Usborne started his photographic career after a number of years working as a creative director in children's TV (which included dressing up as a furry white alien). Before that he studied psychology at Edinburgh University and then animation at Glasgow School of Art.

Martin thinks there is something magical about looking through the lens and capturing a bit of the world. 'You see an interesting array of shapes - people passing in front of a strangely coloured wall and -click- its yours forever. Its so easy it shouldn't be allowed'.

When Martin isn't photographing he is either rockclimbing (he is too heavy to pull himself up), meditating (he can't do the full lotus because he has bad knees) or he is writing his novel (he is stuck on chapter 3 - not having finished Ch.s 1 or 2).

If you care to know more about Martin's work then please go to the portfolio section and look at the 'projects' link. If you are interested in Martin's meandering thoughts you might enjoy the blog and for information on upcoming exhibitions keep an eye on the news section on the front page.

I was once left in a car at a young age.

I don't know when or where or for how long, possibly at the age of four, perhaps outside Tesco's, probably for fifteen minutes only. The details don't matter.  The point is that I wondered if anyone would come back. It seems trivial now but in a child's mind it is possible to be alone forever.

Around the same age I began to feel a deep affinity with animals - in particular their plight at the hands of humans. I remember watching TV and seeing footage of a dog being put in a plastic bag and being kicked. What appalled me most was that the dog could not speak back. It's muteness terrified me.

I should say that I was a well-loved child and never abandoned and yet it is clear that both these experiences arose from the same place deep inside me: a fear of being alone and unheard. Perhaps this is a fear we all share at some level, I am not sure..