The Gates Of Greenham

Inside the image.

A square photographic cover shows a broad rural landscape behind a tall, tangled security fence. The fence fills the lower foreground: dark upright posts and several horizontal wires support a dense mesh, topped with coils of barbed wire that run across the width of the image. Two small figures stand behind it towards the lower right, seen at a distance. One wears a reddish-orange top and stands close to the fence; the other, slightly to the left, appears shorter and wears darker, rust-coloured clothing. Their faces and other details are indistinct.

Beyond the fence lies a vivid green field, with a low pale building and a cluster of small structures at the far left. A thin line of trees and hedges marks the horizon. The land rises gently towards the right, beneath a large, open sky. Two dark aircraft silhouettes appear in the left-hand sky, one above the other. The sky shifts from pale yellow and grey near the horizon to muted blue and lavender cloud cover higher up, especially towards the right. The field is brighter and greener than the shadowed fence and figures, creating distinct horizontal bands of foreground, pasture, distant land and sky.

The title occupies the upper-left corner. The small word “the” sits above the much larger black lettering “Gates of” and “Greenham”, arranged on two lines. The heavy, irregular letters are crossed by thin dark, wire-like lines, and a fine aircraft silhouette extends across the upper title. The name “Tony Biggin” appears in smaller black lettering to the right of the title, against the sky. The image has no visible border. Its photographic scene is softened by distance and subdued light; the fence and lettering provide the darkest, sharpest contrasts.