The Waiting Game

Christian is a photographer who captures social portraits of both people and rural animals. Christian will be exhibiting a few of her photographs from the collection The Waiting Game in the Our Isles exhibition. Besides earning a living from photography, Christian works on personal projects with a yearly exhibition at The Arundel Festival. Explore the following collection by Christian called The Waiting Game.

One day last Spring I came across a game of polo taking place at Cowdray Park. Having my camera to hand I took a few photos of the gleaming strings of ponies loosely tethered under the trees. I was struck by the contrast between these cool calm creatures waiting to play, having their tails plaited and their ankles wrapped and the fast and furious activity taking place in the fields beyond. Over the next few weeks I went back most match days with permission from the Club just to soak up the atmosphere and the beauty of the grounds, the animals and how the grooms instinctively knew how to keep their animals from stress. To watch the massive trucks arrive after often long journeys, and the way in which up to ten ponies are unloaded, with no fuss or panic, clattering down the ramps is an exercise in control and an instinctive understanding between horse and groom. As each horse in any team only plays for 2 - 3 minutes at a time, there is a lot of waiting about, but always on the alert for a rapid changeover. After playing, the horses have to be cooled down, washed and left to rest until the match is over and the return journey begins. Photographs & Words by Christian Doyle | @_christiandoyle

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