For almost ten years Chris Brooks has been returning to his childhood home in Derbyshire (England) to photograph the land and research the story of his family’s printing press, a business which he knew very little about due to the death of his father when he was a teenager.

By employing a mixture of exquisitely composed, atmospheric, large format colour portraits and landscapes combined with archival fragments and pages of letterpress, Chris Brooks examines the pull of history and the complicated nature of belonging and family.

By doing so, he draws our attention to the constantly changing meaning of what it is to be ‘in’ and ‘of’ England. The Brooks Press of Wirksworth is thus a timely meditation on changing notions of nationhood, identity and the power of place.

Further Information:

Chris Brooks is a photographer who has worked with a large number of brands and international publications, including Adidas, Burberry, Jo Malone, Calvin Klein, Amica, Hole and Corner, Glass Magazine and Esquire.

This books relaunches, and is based on, the Family Publishing company (est.1898) which was closed by the author’s father 40 years ago.

Large Format Photography on UV Cure colour Litho.

Illustrations and text are printed Letterpress.