In a time marked by environmental, economic, and social crisis, Glimmer was a body of work by lens-based artist Jess Holdengarde that confronted the paralysis often associated with disillusionment.

 

Holdengarde developed a sustainable analogue photography practice, building an archive of refined recipes for plant-based developers and low-impact processes specific to Scotland and the UK. Rooted in a long-term commitment to sustainability, Glimmer marked a new phase in their practice.

 

Through layered approaches, Glimmer brought together the camera, body, light, silver, and sound to explore how intimacy within a practice could spark transition. Responding to the inertia linked to the current climate crisis, the photographic image functioned as an anchor—a silver thread of light offering moments of refuge and magical realism. Foraging, recording, and deep engagement with surrounding landscapes were central to the process. The photographic works were hand-developed and printed using plant-based developers brewed from locally foraged materials including wild thyme, yarrow, berries, heather, and seaweed.

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Earlier in the year, Holdengarde extended their research through a residency in the Verzasca Valley, Switzerland. Drawn to the large rocks that shimmered in the riverbeds of the Verzasca River, they explored the intimate proximity between bodies of water, rock, camera, and self.

 

“I found inspiration in the connection between my body and the warmth, stability, and presence of the rocks embedded in the valley’s landscape. I used light, time, silver, local plants, and river water to create a series of analogue negatives that formed the foundation of this exhibition.”

A significant influence on Glimmer was the archive of the Wilhelmina Barns-Graham Trust. Holdengarde was particularly drawn to the shifts in Barns-Graham’s work following her visits to Grindelwald (1949) and Orkney (1984), where she embraced constant flux in response to a turbulent and changing world.

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In the making of Glimmer, Holdengarde approached the analogue darkroom as a space of transition shaped by ritual, alchemy, and momentum. The environment became an active participant in the process. By printing at scale and allowing the image to bleed to the edges, imperfections were embraced—scratches from plant-based materials and residues from river water embedded the landscape directly into the work.

Glimmer offered a space where lens-based practice, the body, sound, and sustainability converged as acts of resilience and hope—glimmers of possibility amid uncertainty.