The Futureheads' Ross Millard to hold photography exhibition at Sunderland's Pop Recs

Destination, the exhibition which opens at Pop Recs, Sunderland on 23rd February, is a collection of photographs taken by Ross spanning several years of personal travels and time spent on tour with his band The Futureheads.

Ross said: “Photography has become a way for me to keep a diary or visual scrapbook of sorts, to remind me of certain tours and travels as a musician, and of personal experiences I’ve had in places that have felt unfamiliar and exotic.

“Since the very early days of the band I have always had a camera with me on tour. I try to take photographs that give a sense of place, and that serve as a personal mood board, in a way. Each image is like a little time portal”.

The exhibition, curated by North East-based visual arts collective, ‘Tion Arts, features images of people and places that Ross has encountered around the world.

The artist explains: “Such a large part of who I am as an artist is rooted in the North East, but I was really keen to work with Jon and Jo at ‘Tion’ to present images that have been taken outside of the UK, on unfamiliar soil, where a lot of times that sense of self and confidence about who you are can be challenged, or perceived in very different ways.

" I think we often feel differently about who we are when we’re away from home, and sometimes it’s nice to live for a while in that feeling - taking photographs is a way that I can achieve that.

“Whether on the chaotic, teeming streets of São Paulo, or on solitary day-off explorations of the American mid-West, I hope the images can generate that feeling of unpredictable excitement and adventure that I’ve had travelling, playing music and snapping away over the last 20 years”.

• “Destination” opens at Pop Recs, Sunderland on Friday 23rd February (6-8.30pm) and runs until the end of April.