www.kirstygreig.com
The Solitary City
June 2011
Urbanization and the pace of life, which many lead today, have seen cities swell and become densely populated. But although we are surrounded by millions of people, the question is asked how many of these people do we actually know, or stop and talk too. There has developed a common trend of people feeling isolated or alone in such a large and densely populated space, living on top of one another but not even knowing your neighbors name.
The project was about exploring the above themes, urbanisation, human density and isolation. I decided to look at the themes alongside one another and explore the idea that came across frequently in my research that of the common trend of people feeling isolated or alone in such a densely populated space and create a split screen narrative film juxtaposing the two themes.
As the project progressed I began to realise a lot of the shots that I was capturing were more about chosen isolation and solitude rather then loneliness. Many people were choosing to take themselves away from the crowd and almost enjoying that time alone, they weren’t lonely in the sense of being sad and alone, but solitary and happy in the fact that they were on their own.
