Book cover for The Tranquility of Solitude by Derek Henderson

The Tranquility of Solitude – Derek Henderson

Text and photographs by Derek Henderson
Poetry by David Merritt

 

A photographic journey through the backroads of living differently. Acclaimed photographer Derek Henderson encounters and chronicles the nomadic life of Fergus and his horse Flex on the rugged West Coast of Te Waipounamu / the South Island of Aotearoa New Zealand. This collection of images chart a lifestyle that seems to strip away the complexities of modern living and yet reflects a complex approach to individuality and participation in society.

 

Includes an introduction by the artist and a new poem by the famously nomadic David Merritt: ‘Man is a beast of burden: or, death comes soon enough, I’m in no hurry’.

 

Published May 2025
Softcover, 152 pages
ISBN 9781991154156

 

Available with one of two limited edition prints.

Price range: $90.00 through $155.00

The Artist

Derek Henderson

New Zealand born Derek Henderson (b. 1963) currently divides his time between Auckland, New Zealand and Sydney, Australia. Aside from his innovative and distinct work in fashion photography, Henderson also exhibits work as part of his fine-arts practice both nationally and internationally.

From the introduction

Somewhere on State Highway 6 – a two-lane road that runs the length of the West Coast – I noticed a man walking his horse on the grass beside the road, heading in the other direction. It had been a hot day, and it was now late in the afternoon. The man wore the kind of thick oilskin coat people sometimes wear in these parts to resist the rain, and in the clear light, sweat visibly gleamed on his forehead. I didn’t turn the car around immediately, but about a kilometre further down the road, I began wondering who the person was, and where he and his horse were going? What he was wearing said he wasn’t a recreational rider, but walking alone with his horse he wasn’t a farmer either.

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