What does it feel like to enter the sea — rather than simply look at it?
In Floating Worlds, Dorset-based photographer Heather Field explores the physical and emotional experience of cold-water swimming through a collaboration with seven members of the Chilly Dippers, a community of sea swimmers connected with Chill Dorset, which aims to improve people’s mental and physical wellbeing.
Each swimmer comes to the sea for different personal reasons. Rather than simply documenting their experiences from the shore, Heather immersed herself in their world, joining them in the water over ten weeks to explore what cold-water swimming feels like and how photography might communicate that experience.
“I began by photographing the swimmers from the shore, but realised that to understand something of their experience, I needed to join them. I became fascinated by those in-between moments — where land meets sea, where anticipation gives way to immersion. Once in the water, the sea became part of the collaboration, and transitional experience shaping photographs in ways I couldn’t always predict,” Heather explains.
The resulting exhibition traces these moments of transition, moving between shoreline and sea, calm and turbulence, intimacy and exhilaration. Presented through photographs of varying scale and materials, Floating Worlds invites viewers to experience something of the sensation of being in the water, rather than simply witnessing it. The exhibition is the culmination of Heather’s MA Photography at Arts University Bournemouth, where she recently graduated. Looking ahead, Heather hopes to use photography to shine a light on people, communities and causes, building on the collaborative approach at the heart of Floating Worlds.
Visitors are invited to view the exhibition at an Opening Reception on Tuesday 24th November from 6 pm to 8 pm at our clinic on Bridge Street in Christchurch, Dorset.
The exhibition will continue until noon on Friday, 27th November, during the opening hours of 8:30 am to 8:00 pm. The exhibition is free to attend, with donations to Chill Dorset gratefully received.
“We have absolutely loved working with Heather on this project,” said Jo Cox, Hub Leader at Chill Dorset. “Having her dip alongside us, she has truly captured how we feel, how we see and how we embrace our beautiful ocean.”
Chill Dorset is a not-for-profit organisation that provides sea swimming courses for people over 18 with any long-term health condition. Their friendly, supported cold water courses across Dorset are open to adult swimmers, including those managing mental and physical challenges such as anxiety, depression and cancer.
Bridge Health & Wellbeing has supported Chill Dorset for the past three years, through a range of fundraising activities.
“We were keen to support a small, local charity which is making a difference to people right here in Christchurch,” added Louise O’Connell, Pilates teacher and co-founder of Bridge Health & Wellbeing. “Chill operates from Avon Beach, which is just minutes from our clinic.”
“When we saw Heather’s incredible images of the Chill swimmers, we jumped at the opportunity to turn our clinic into a gallery to showcase her work. We hope visitors will come to appreciate how Heather has captured the therapeutic benefits of spending time in the sea and help raise funds for Chill to continue running their courses.”
About the artist
Heather Field is a British-Canadian photographer based on the south coast of England. Working across documentary and affective photography, her practice explores the relationships between people, place and lived experience. She is particularly interested in how photographs can evoke feelings, atmosphere and physical sensations rather than simply record what something looks like.
Having spent more than twenty years living abroad, including in Japan and Canada, her work is informed by an enduring interest in place, transition and collaboration.
Exhibition details
Floating Worlds — Heather Field
Dates: 24/11/26 – 27/11/26
Venue: Bridge Health & Wellbeing, 54a Bridge Street, Christchurch, Dorset, BH23 1EB
Opening hours: 24/11/26 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm, 25/11/26 8:30 am – 8:00 pm, 26/11/26 8:30 am – 8:00 pm, 27/11/26 8:30 am – 12:00 pm
Admission: Open to the public. Free event, with donations to Chill Dorset invited.
Website: hanamuraphotography.com
