Capturing every hour of each New Year’s Day for 24 years
24/02/2023
For the past 20 years a group of photographers have set out to capture a flavour of the first day of the year, those quiet moments that can go unnoticed.
Each photographer is allocated one hour to record what is going on around them, and each moves forward one hour every year, so in four years’ time when the project finally ends they will all have taken a picture for each hour of the day.
The original 24 met while studying at Central St Martins in London, although some have moved on and been replaced by others in the subsequent years.
This year’s collection was curated by Anna Bassett, picture editor of The Times magazine, who said: “I think this collection of photographs taken during the first 24 hours of 2023 gives you a real sense of the world coming together to celebrate the same day, regardless of where in the world the images are taken.
“This selection evokes the various junctures in New Year’s Day, and seeks to capture life within its 24 hours, be it a poignant moment, a celebration, or just the passing of time.
“A variety of situations, people, places and atmospheres are encapsulated within the images, and give a visually dynamic sense of the times we’re living in.”
The pictures are on show for 24 days in Soho Square, London, from 24 February until 19 March.
Here is a selection of the pictures with comments from some of the photographers.
All times in GMT.
00:00 Candida Jones
IMAGE SOURCE,CANDIDA JONES
Image caption,
Candida Jones calls this one Under his Eye.
01:00 Rachel Hain
IMAGE SOURCE,RACHEL HAIN
Image caption,
“Wren’s cathedral was the tallest building in London until 60 years ago: now framed by glass and steel facades which offer new views.”
04:00 Helen Chambers
IMAGE SOURCE,HELEN CHAMBERS
Image caption,
Helen Chambers took this picture in Banbridge, Northern Ireland, she calls it The Road Between Them: “Nothing really prepares you for the loss of a parent. It feels like a formative moment, that will shape the rest of your life. Something that you will never truly get over. Both my parents died this year. My mum passed away in June in our family house, on the east side of this road, and my dad, in December, in a nursing home, on the west side. This seemingly unexceptional place is significant to me, because it is the road that separated them.”
06:00 Charlotte Bond
IMAGE SOURCE,CHARLOTTE BOND
Image caption,
“Felixstowe docks, Britain’s largest container port, at dawn. The industrial lights shining in the early hours of the new year, lighting up the multicoloured containers, ending a year of turmoil, war and strikes. A new year always brings a glimmer of hope. In the darkness there is always light.”
08:00 Yvonne De Rosa
IMAGE SOURCE,YVONNE DE ROSA
Image caption,
“Whether it’s now or years from now, the same stars will always be shining over this beautiful southern Italian city. Today, and for many years to come, Naples will remain connected to the past, present, and future under the watchful eyes of the beloved iconic Vesuvius: a reminder of the timelessness and resilience of the city.”
09:00 (10:00 CET) Enrico Vietti
IMAGE SOURCE,ENRICO VIETTI
Image caption,
“The picture captures the chaos and confusion of moving, amidst a cluttered space, reminding us of the challenges and opportunities that come with starting fresh in a new year.”
12:00 Teri Pengilley
IMAGE SOURCE,TERI PENGILLEY
Image caption,
“Finding light in the darkest times we find the brightest light, if we are brave enough to explore.”
14:00 Ali Waggie
IMAGE SOURCE,ALI WAGGIE
Image caption,
“Some put hope in medicine. Some put their faith in God. But when the chips are down, all you need is love – and a mog.”
17:00 Sarah Lucy Brown
IMAGE SOURCE,SARAH LUCY BROWN
Image caption,
“I spent New Year’s Day in with my best friends and their children. We really all just had an overwhelming feeling of love and togetherness as we headed into 2023.”
18:00 Nicky Townsend
IMAGE SOURCE,NICKY TOWNSEND
Image caption,
Nicky Townsend entitled this one Juliet 2023.
19:00 (15:00 Bolivia) Gini May
IMAGE SOURCE,GINI MAY
Image caption,
Gini May took this picture in Bolivia: “Llamas in love taken on an oasis between the Uyuni Salt Flats and the Siloli Desert.”
22:00 Brendan Delaney
IMAGE SOURCE,BRENDAN DELANEY
Image caption,
“Even on a cold wet New Year’s Day evening, the north London transport hub finds some passengers.”
