PhotoVoice is interviewing established photographers to gain a wider insight into the power of photography and the different approaches to ethical considerations.
This month we interviewed photographer Clare Hughes, an experienced neurodiverse professional photographer based in East Sussex, England.
Clare’s personal photographic projects explore women’s identities in culture, with subjects ranging from online personas to the treatment of medical conditions and neurodiversity. Clare’s most recent exhibition ‘The Hidden Mothers‘ was held in June at The Science Gallery in London.
Where did it all begin and why did you choose photography and not another medium?
I really struggled in school. As a result I really didn’t think I was very good at learning or intelligent enough, so I left mainstream education at the age of 13. I eventually scraped together enough qualifications to make it into college and onto my GNVQ Media Studies course. This course had a photography module, where I picked up a camera for the first time.
Honestly this changed my life; I became obsessed with learning its history, looking at photographers’ work and taking pictures. It gave me the confidence and enthusiasm to gain a BA in Fashion Photography at The London College of Fashion, and then my Masters in Photojournalism & Social Documentary Photography at University of Westminster. Which is where I also found out I was Dyslexic and Dyspraxic. I really wonder what would have happened if I hadn’t found photography because this became my way to express myself.
Tell us a bit about your approach to photography.
My approach to photography has always been to tell a story or make a point. I really feel that it’s a privilege to photograph someone, be that for a project or a portrait session. My work is alot about research first where I find historical archive imagery and use it to make a point about contemporary issues.
I feel we have a lot to learn from historical archives that although sometimes can visually look very dated and old especially in comparison to contemporary imagery; the content is still the same and most of the time highlights that the issues expressed haven’t moved on much although the technological advances have, we are still dealing with the same issues.
How do you decide if something is worth capturing?
It depends on if I’m shooting a commercial or personal project.
If it’s commercial, like an event, it’s listening to my intuition and waiting for unexpected moments and interactions. I mainly shoot people so this could be a moment of thought or a response to what’s happening around them.
My self-led work is mainly about a researched response to something socially that I want to make sense of, or want to help shed light on a subject that I feel needs more awareness to help make a difference. I really enjoy using concepts that make the audience think from an alternative perspective.
I think we have become so oversaturated by images in adverts and on social media that there is only so much information we can process, especially as some documentary photography has become predictable. We have to start thinking about creative ways to get people to feel something and be impacted by difficult subject matter in order for change to happen.
Is there a single image that defines you as a photographer?
I don’t think that there is one photograph that could define me as a photographer but a body of work that encapsulates my approach would be my project The Hidden Mothers.
This work uses Victorian archive imagery of mothers disguised as pieces of furniture to hold their baby steady for an in-focus portrait to visually convey what women sufferers of Hyperemesis Gravidarum (a severe sickness in pregnancy) feel during pregnancy and postnatally: hidden!
HG is a hidden condition in so many ways, but especially by the medical profession. Taking this visual approach as a starting point, I asked participants who bravely stepped forward to tell their stories to be covered in pieces of fabric for their ‘portrait’. This visual metaphor of a woman being covered up to look like a piece of furniture asks the audience to think about what we’re doing to mothers at the most vulnerable time of their lives.
The Hidden Mothers demonstrates my research-based and participatory practice, while the imagery that has come from it has had such a positive impact it is a good example of where my work is now and where it can go in the future.
Can photography bring about positive social change?
Absolutely. We all have images from the world that stick in our minds, and that have hit a nerve and made us think. This is the power of photography. And it’s a power imagemakers possess, that they can use their passion for social change, to help society think more about other people’s stories and real perspectives.
Has charity/non-profit photography changed since you started?
Speaking visually, I’m not sure much has changed. I think we have become so oversaturated by images in adverts and on social media that there is only so much information we can process, especially as some documentary photography has become predictable. We have to start thinking about creative ways to get people to feel something and be impacted by difficult subject matter in order for change to happen. I think the awareness of participatory photography and its importance for participants’ stories is a development that if carried out ethically, has such rich benefits for participant outcomes and how we can learn from these personal viewpoints.
What is your approach to the ethics of photography?
Ethics are vital. I’m telling people’s personal stories and I want the participants involved in my project to be comfortable with every step of the process. So that the very act of being part of the project is a cathartic approach and they feel comfortable to share as much as they wish.
What’s been your greatest achievement as a photographer?
My greatest achievement to date is my project The Hidden Mothers: it’s particularly important to me as the very act of producing the project has been a much-needed cathartic experience for myself as I also suffered with the condition Hyperemesis Gravidarum in both my pregnancies.
I feel immensely proud of the response it has received and how people have felt validated by the visual representation of the horrendousness of the condition and how they have felt treated by the medical profession.
The project has been supported by the charity Pregnancy Sickness Support, exhibited at The Houses of Parliament in London, supported by the charity Her Foundation and exhibited in Los Angeles for the ICHG conference. Work from the project has been acquired into the BirthRites Collection and funding has been received from King’s College London to support The Hidden Mothers exhibition at Science Gallery London in June 2025.
I’m also running a Go Fund Me campaign at the same time to seek funding for The Hidden Mothers book to be printed and sent to all the maternity managers across the UK to help raise more awareness of the condition and the treatments available.
How important do you think equipment is?
Do you have any advice for aspiring photographers?
It’s hard! And it feels like it’s getting harder. You need to find ways that you can support yourself outside of projects or freelance commissions as this won’t always be consistent.
