One Hundred Weeks Of Scotland is an attempt to create a portrait of Scottish life in the roughly 100 weeks from the signing of the ‘Edinburgh Agreement’ until the 2014 Referendum on Scottish Independence. Regardless of the outcome of the vote, Scotland will never be quite the same again – I feel we are entering a ‘fin de siècle’ period. What I am aiming to do is document as many aspects of Scottish life throughout this exciting and vibrant period as I can.
The project takes the form of a weekly photo blog consisting of one or more images. The scope of the project is very large and this allows a lot of flexibility in my approach. Some of the content will depend on what I am physically able to do in a certain week, whereas other weeks will be specifically themed. I am keen for the subject matter to be as varied as possible – politics, social history, industry, people, sport, culture, art etc.
Comedian and actor Des McLean backstage at Glasgow Kings Theatre, during the run of “I, Tommy”, a satirical take on the rise and fall of Tommy Sheridan.
Oran War. A wrestling night arranged by Scottish actors Greg Hemphill and Robert Florence. Oran Mor, Glasgow.
Children at a Halloween nursery party in Leith.
Construction work on the Forth Bridge replacement crossing taken on the day the first permanent structure was put in place.
I am painfully aware that as I am based in the central belt I will have to make an extra effort to make sure that I represent as many different areas of Scotland as necessary – I am already planning many, many trips round the country for the next couple of years, and trawling the web and newspapers for every possible photo opportunity I can find.
It was only really after I published the first weeks images that it really sunk in that I had effectively given myself a weekly deadline to provide images for the next two years – which although daunting is a great way to ensure that the project stays on track and up to date.
Hopefully by the end of the project I will have documented an extremely important period in the history of the nation, as it approaches the possibly the most important event to take place for centuries.
Please visit the One Hundred Weeks of Scotland website to check for weekly updates.
Alan McCredie
Photographer
alanmc.co.uk
