Photography and Seafaring: Making Visible Martime Bodies and Space of Comtemporary Trading

The shipping industry remains largely invisible to the public, yet its workers and vessels sustain global trade. This project uses photography to create new visual interpretations of maritime spaces and the lives of seafarers on contemporary trading ships. Most people never see the inside of a cargo vessel or understand the working conditions of those who crew them. The research addresses a gap in how these spaces and bodies are represented, offering a counter-narrative to abstract shipping statistics or romanticised portrayals of life at sea. If successful, the project could change how the public, policymakers, and industry stakeholders perceive maritime labour and infrastructure. Visual documentation may inform debates about crew welfare, port regulation, or the human dimension of supply chains—systems that quietly keep global commerce moving but are rarely examined through an artistic or humanistic lens.