Biography

On first glance of Cutmore’s striking photography, it can be perceived that she is an urban landscape photographer however her work follows the findings of abstraction and pattern through her photography, with a major focus on the city. Cutmore’s upbringing between cities of Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Sunderland led to her interest in the modernist landscape, seeking to find beauty in the mundane, over-crowded places that she describes as her home. Whilst capturing a lot of her shots in these Northern areas, she hopes to extend her practice and start an exploration into the reaction of cities and regions against the modernist movement and industrialisation. She finds endless inspiration in the geometry of buildings, the fluidity of urban movement, and the juxtaposition of various elements. She is intrigued by the rhythmic repetition of patterns that emerge from the urban chaos. In a place where the female voice is still marginalised, Cutmore’s photography serves as a medium for empowerment, breaking down the barriers and the need to challenge the traditional canon of the male-dominated field of photography. 

Finding interest in the harmonious order that emerges from the urban chaos in her rhythmic repeated shots of windows on a skyscraper to building’s unique shapes. She hopes to inspire viewers to see the beauty of their own surroundings that are classically depicted as mundane. By focusing on the overlooked details, she is able to awaken a sense of curiosity and encourage a deeper connection with her photography and the urban environment. 

Cutmore takes advantage of brutalism through her photography. Printing on aluminium and displaying in a grid to mimic and project the modernist architecture that is being shot, making for a striking series of images. The gritty, matt prints on sheets of aluminium intensify the brutalist demeans of her work, whilst creating a contradictory of aluminium being a delicate material that care needs taking into consideration with subjects of power and hardness printed onto them. 

Abstraction plays a crucial role in Cutmore’s creative process, from her past practices of abstract painting, she continues this into her photography. Inviting viewers to engage with her work and the fundamental nature of the city by abstracting familiar forms, she invites her audience to question and encourage a deeper exploration of the urban environment, creating a bridge between reality and abstraction.

This idea of abstraction can be followed through into her recognisable grid-like compositions, taking play on the modernist subjects of her photographs. She strategically places each of her prints into positions in which a flow and continuation can be made throughout the ever-growing grids that she makes by focusing on angles and lines that create a large-scale abstracted piece. 

Many artists and photographers influence and guide Cutmore’s practice, she seeks her inspiration for the most part from the German photography movement and the attendees of The Dusseldorf School of Photography. These artists include, Hilla and Bernd Becher, Thomas Struff and her most major influence Andreas Gursky.