A Handshake with a Martian

“The idea of exploring the UFO phenomena derived from my own underlying feeling of the unknown. The fear of the future, the fear of the past and the fear of what surrounds us. The unknown leaves me feeling lost and overwhelmed. Humanity fails to ask and consider the important questions that explains our existence. People will pray to a god that they have never seen or met, but yet the existence of extra-terrestrial life visiting earth is laughed at by some and claimed to be implausible by others. The question is why? Are people too scared to try and discover the truth? or have we been trained to desensitise ourselves from reality and ignore the rebarbative question to why or how we even exist. “

Provoked by his inner curiosity into the UFO scene in the United Kingdom, A Handshake with a Martian is a personal investigation into the British UFO phenomena. Fradley embarks on a journey that takes him across the UK to try and understand what has occurred.

Supported by official declassified documents, this project is a photographic response to his journey. He meets the people who believe in and research UFOS, as well as visits the locations where these famous sightings happened.

This project began in 2018 and is still ongoing as of 2020. 

About the Artist

Samuel Fradley is a British documentary photographer based in Torbay who runs his own company, The South West Collective of Photography Ltd, with ambition to promote photography in the South West of England. In his personal works, Sam searches for stories that are different, unique and often on the fringe of society, as he believes that these make for the most interesting stories. His work also explores other genres of photography, while occasionally focusing on current global events or responding to stories closer to home.

Website: https://www.samuelfradley.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samuelfradley96/