On the fields and in the courts, where dreams and egos are shattered.
Where every shred of muscle torn, where bones are bloody, bodies battered.
There exists in minds, the glorious moment to exceed the norm.
When physics seem defied, and cumbersome oafs find heightened form.
In these arenas godly beings emerge, when free of desire, fear and nerves.
Having spent a fair amount of time exploring this world of ours I have sought to document and observe the strands of connexion that draw us together, as a species. The prevalence of sports and games, the ubiquity of play amongst other unifying traits has fascinated me, to the extent I wanted to catalogue my observations wherever I travelled. At its most altruistic, competition and participation can reveal the most generous sides of humanity: bonhomie, geniality, generosity, accord, teamwork, self-sacrifice. Yet conversely the very same arenas can generate arrogance, ego, self-importance and violence.
In recording the spaces, occupied and unoccupied, I have sought to convey the mythical nature of the universal theme. As far as the human mind can recollect and in the written records, we have competed against each other, we have fought each other, raced each other, attempted to best each other but in this coliseum heightened pathos and connectivity can be attained.
Ben P Richards 