Tara Drummie, North Uist based photographer, filmmaker and artist, is a part of our Uist Beò team and we thought we would tell you about her life as a creative for this upcoming story. You’ll often see her photography, film and illustrations featured within our stories on Uist.co.

Having grown up in London, Tara moved to North Uist in early 2020 with her partner Calum who was returning home. Before landing across the Minch, Tara studied Communication Design at the Glasgow School of Art, and completed her degree remotely in North Uist over lockdown. 

‘When I first moved up to Uist, I was in my final year at Uni. I had such a warm welcome from my partner’s family, our friends and neighbours from the get-go and was lucky enough to jump straight into the deep end with crofting, with our Hebridean flock.
  
Everyone was so generous with passing on knowledge and I was really inspired by low intensity methods of crofting and the history of reusing and upcycling here. And that really inspired my final degree work… That was the start of my immersion and my creative practice here in Uist.’

For her degree show work, Tara created giant cameras from the plastic and debris she found on the machair, which unfortunately is in abundance. Her idea was to use the environment as a medium to record itself, using the materials that were available to her from within the landscape to build cameras from scratch.

‘I used marine debris and wood and sand and seaweed to build these really big structures and then essentially created a dark chamber like you’d have in a typical camera, but just massive. 

 

Once I had a really dark space, I just used a found aperture. So for example, for Horse Box Camera, one of the cameras I made, I used a hole in a calves feeding bottle cap as my aperture or kind of lens, if you like, that helped project the image into the camera’s internal wall.

 

Slowing the process down of taking a picture is an incredible way to connect with your subject matter. It can result in a more honest portrayal of the story that you’re telling.’

Tara continues to use land and sea as her canvas and is interested in how crofting works in collaboration with its environment. She looks at how she can mirror the method of working with the landscape and documenting it in her work.

‘So that’s why I used the materials within the landscape to then create the camera that took a picture of it. Even though the machair has formed over millennia, it’s still shaped by humans as well. 

When I first came here, I remember just being completely astonished by how vast and open the landscape was. I’d never seen anything like it. And then finding out more about the inspiring people of Uist and the islands’ rich history and vibrant Gàidhlig culture and heritage. I grew up in London and am half German and I do love the city, but I really appreciate the richness of Uist’s unique culture.’

The way of freelancing comes second nature to islanders with many having various jobs that change throughout the year, and this works on the art scene too. Since arriving in Uist, Tara has worked with Studio Vans and also helps out seasonally at the Dunes Cabin alongside her Uist Beò work. She’s held art shows in Taigh Chearsabhagh, has hosted workshops and has worked with the young people in the schools, all while still making an effort to step up her Gàidhlig skills. 

‘Learning Gàidhlig is important to me, my partner’s first language and the native language here. As part of my employment with Studio Vans they offered Gàidhlig lessons and they were great. Duolingo’s been really helpful too and all the Gàidhlig speakers within the community of course!’

Recently, she’s worked with the Hebrides International Film Festival. As an artist, she has a passion for documentary and storytelling, highlighted in her work for Uist Beò. Tara says that:

‘I’ve been very lucky to have picked up loads of creative work as a freelancer and artist in Uist. I feel like word gets around here very fast, so that can work to your advantage as a freelancer.

Since working with Uist Beò, I’ve been exploring my interest in environmental portraiture and documentary, telling stories about all the inspiring people in Uist. I’ve been really lucky to be able to meet lots of really interesting people and document some brilliant projects and enterprises. I feel very connected and integrated here and my work has been a huge part of that.’

Life as an artist can be a challenge. There are always battles to be fought with funding, finding your next big idea and creating whatever your concept is. As a creative, there is always a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes before an audience has ever even heard of an idea and there is always the dreaded admin tasks. It’s important for people to support artists and turn up when new work is put out into the world.

 

Tara has found herself in a very supportive community when it comes to her endeavours. She mentions that:

‘There’s a great group of artists here. We’ve run casual crit clubs at friends’ houses and at our place. We all help each other and give feedback to where we’re at with projects.

I feel very supported and appreciated as an artist in Uist.’

To see some of Tara’s work you can check out her website and follow her online:

https://taradrummie.cargo.site/