“SWEET Thames, run softly, till I end my song,” Edmund Spenser wrote in his 1596 poem Prothalamion. More than 400 years later it still runs, possibly not as sweetly as it once did (though sweeter than it did 60 years ago; it was declared “biologically dead” in 1957).
And like all rivers it is a magnet for people, pulling them to its banks and into its waters.
Read More: Portfolio: Structures of Landscape, Montana
Read More: Portfolio: Patlabor 2
The photographer Chloe Dewe Mathews has spent years chronicling that attraction. In her images you will find druids, Anglican priests, Morris dancers mudlarkers, commuters, Hindus, families scattering the ashes of loved ones, fishermen and swimmers all drawn to the Thames as it travels from its source in Gloucestershire to the North Sea.
Here, a group of white-robed Pentecostalists from London in 2013 have travelled to Southend-on-Sea for a full-immersion. When the River Jordan isn’t close by, you find what works.
Thames Log by Chloe Dewe Mathews, £40, is co-published by Loose Joints and Martin Parr Foundation, who will exhibit the work in summer 2021.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here