INTERVIEW: Hazel Plater

Image: Hazel Plater by Sasha Mallo Tardiveau

In her long-form documentary project The Geordie Riviera, North East photographer Hazel Plater captures the rhythms of daily life along the North Tyneside coastline through exploratory photography from North Shields, Tynemouth, Cullercoats and Whitley Bay, celebrating seaside society and its underappreciated beauty.

“It’s the coast I grew up with,” Hazel shares, reflecting on what drew her to document the area in such depth. “After my Mam passed away in 2021, I sorted out things and found family ‘bucket and spade’ photographs, taken at King Edward’s Bay, Tynemouth when I was little. And now, I’m documenting other people’s experiences of this stretch of coastline.”

Influenced by both iconic and lesser-known names in photography, Hazel points to artists whose visual storytelling helped shape her own instincts. “Martin Parr is just so much fun! I can’t say that my work is anywhere near his understanding of British culture, though. Helen Levitt really inspires my street photography – how she used shape and form to show the relationship between people and their environment. Alberto Schommer’s book Azul has this whole blue/white/gold sun-kissed vibe… I’ve tried to do that here too.”

Now firmly focused on people and community, Hazel’s photography style has matured alongside a desire to let the images speak simply. “The majority of my photographs don’t have very much editing at all,” she notes. “Maybe it’s unusual in these ‘social media polishing’ times.”

Her images talk louder when capturing events like Whitley Bay Carnival and the Cullercoats Festival: “It’s interesting how different people gather together to do different things there. I do especially like an event where I can include a lot of people in a single frame.”

It’s not just the obvious bits that can be seen as pretty. I actually really love the shapes and peeling paint of the decommissioned paddling pools and the areas of rocky shoreline we have

And when asked if there is any image from the exhibition that holds particular significance, Hazel picks a candid photo of roofers taking a break on a bench facing the sea. “To me, this bench image represents all the non-holidaymakers who enjoy this stretch of coastline as part of their regular day.”

Her creative process is based on instinct but is then shaped into a narrative. “I’ve been shooting a lot of the urban landscape photographs on 35mm film, so I don’t see those results as quickly as the digital ones. But then I make small prints from both and look at them together until they form a cohesive story.”

From collaborating with artist Conrad Milne on his upcoming Through Shields installation to continuing her own photographic wanderings, Hazel is energised by future possibilities. “I’d be interested in talking to anyone that has ideas of how I might expand upon and present this project in other ways too.”

In whatever way Hazel presents this project, it will continue to peel back the distorting veneer of Instagram-edited images we’re bombarded with and reveal the true beauty of the Tyneside coast. When asked what she hoped people would take away from The Geordie Riviera, she responds: “That it’s not just St Mary’s Lighthouse! It’s not just the obvious bits that can be seen as pretty. I actually really love the shapes and peeling paint of the decommissioned paddling pools and the areas of rocky shoreline we have, once you get away from the more touristy spots.”

The Geordie Riviera is exhibited at North Shields Library (2nd–31st July), Battle Hill Library (4th August–25th September, including meet-the-photographer event on 7th August) and Newcastle’s Civic Centre Arches Gallery (29th September–10th October).