‘surreal north’ is a body of work that explores the landscapes of northern england through a surrealist and expanded visual language, celebrating their distinct character while also exploring the forces that continue to reshape them. it reflects on the tension between heritage and transformation, functioning as both a documentation on place identity and a commentary on the rapid industrial growth and globalisation that have come to define the region in recent years. having grown up in the north, I have been surrounded by these landscapes marked by post-industrial remnants, shifting infrastructures, and evolving identities my entire life. while the region is often framed one-dimensionally through narratives of its industrial past and social documentary in photography as the region saw de-industrial decline and social deprivation, it is the present moment of transition that informs my practice. these are places where high rise apartments, financial centres and new transport links increasingly occupy the same ground as former mills, factories, and derelict land. across the region, this process of change is both visible and uneven. according to the office for national statistics, manchester (which accounts for 41% of the regions GDP) saw an 83% in GDP per capita between 2011 and 2023. expanding road networks, transport hubs and ambitious building projects convey economic growth, yet they also raise questions about environmental impact, cultural erasure, and the gentrification of local identity. The landscapes become sites of overlap where globalisation clashes with a rich cultural history through constructed landscape photography using digital manipulation and compositing techniques, I reimagine these environments as heightened, endless spaces. familiar terrains are extended, distorted, and expanded into abstract works that blur the boundaries between reality and surrealism. these works aim to reflect the dissonance of contemporary northern landscapes and capture it from a new perspective. the resulting images act as both documentation and speculation. they capture a region in flux while amplifying its contradictions, presenting landscapes that feel simultaneously recognisable and new. In doing so, the work invites reflection on how industrial expansion and globalisation are not only transforming the physical environment, but also reshaping the ways in which these places are seen, understood, and lived in