VIDEO
JACK’S MISSION
“I never embarked in any one thing to which I have so entirely devoted myself, and to which I have devoted so much time, thought, and labour, and on the success of which I have staked so much reputation, and to which I have so largely committed myself and those who were disposed to place faith in me.
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the incredible charity of brave, selfless volunteers who save lives at sea in the UK and Ireland.
The organisation has been entirely funded by voluntary contributions for over 200 years.
The Lifeboat Station Project was Jack Lowe’s epic mission to photograph the RNLI lifeboat community on glass, relying on the support of his online community
First conceived in 2012, Jack’s original vision was to visit and document all 238 stations.
The Lifeboat Station Project got underway on 12th January 2015. However, after 150 stations and over 5 years working on the coast, Jack’s journey came to an abrupt pause
The RNLI immediately closed all their stations to the public, a situation which lasted for two full years.
Jack was finally able to continue making new work on the project in March 2022 once receiving the go-ahead from the RNLI.
Although it was certainly a huge relief to resume his coastal journey, these remain very challenging times and Jack decided to stop making new work on the project in September 2024, which you can read about here
Scroll down to learn more about the project…
Jack Lowe at Dover on 30th September 2018 (Photograph by KT Bruce)
Photography has been in Jack Lowe’s blood since he was a young boy. Aged 8, he received a Kodak Instamatic camera from his grandmother, a turning point from which he’s never looked back.
The earliest seeds of this project were sown in Jack’s childhood, when his love for lifeboats began.
Much later in life — and after an eclectic career in the photographic industry — Jack found himself searching for a change in direction, something that would take him away from sitting in front of computers all day.
He reflected on his childhood passions and wrote these words on a piece of paper:
That scrap of paper — along with a lot of thinking, dreaming and planning — led Jack to the idea of travelling to all 238 RNLI lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland in order to document the community and preserve a vital aspect of our island nation’s culture.
And there’s a twist! Jack worked as the Victorians used to, making the photographs on glass from his mobile darkroom, a decommissioned ambulance called Neena .
A decade after conceiving the idea, Jack has created an unprecedented archive for the history books.
The project was the first time anyone had tried to create a complete photographic record of every single RNLI lifeboat crew, and it soon became noted for its enormous historic and cultural significance.
The photographs have already been showcased in stunning exhibitions and a selection of the work has been acquired for three national collections so far:
The National Collection of Welsh Photographs
The National Maritime Museum
National Museums Liverpool
WHO’S BACKING THE PROJECT?
Jack wasn’t commissioned to make The Lifeboat Station Project.
It’s an idea he came up with in 2012 and one that he believed in so strongly that he simply got on with it, relying on his community of supporters online shop
Learn about all the ways you can continue to support the project here:
THE VISION
Using a process known as wet collodion , Jack has crafted unique photographs on glass, capturing the view from each station and the waters protected by the RNLI crews.
As well as the view from each station Coxswains and Helms the women mechanics crews
Patrick ‘Patch’ Harvey, Penlee RNLI Coxswain, September 2015, 12×10 inch Clear Glass Ambrotype
Each glass plate — known as a wet collodion positive on glass (Ambrotype is a common shorthand) — is a beautiful standalone artwork. However, the true glory of such an endeavour is being realised in collating the archive of some 700 photographs into a book and exhibitions.
Jack’s ultimate vision is to display the photographs in geographic order around a huge gallery space; as the audience stands in the middle of the venue and looks around, the sensation of looking out to sea from coastline of the UK and Ireland will be extraordinary.
His audio recordings
Never one to think small, Jack dreams of exhibiting the project in high profile venues with Neena (his mobile darkroom) as a centrepiece so that visitors can see where all the photographs were made. If the venues are large enough to accommodate an all-weather lifeboat too, then all the better!
In 2024, The National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, London, hosted a hugely successful exhibition called Women of the RNLI
Jack is currently in the throes of making the book of The Lifeboat Station Project. It will likely need to be more than one volume, hopefully including some of the sound recordings along with fold-out maps and a foreword by someone special.
As part of his contribution to the RNLI community and in exchange for their help on the day, Jack gifts each station two limited edition prints o. 1 of the crew photograph and Print No. 1 of the Coxswain/Helm portrait — so that the lifeboat volunteers can enjoy the photographs regardless of their means and so that people can retrace Jack’s journey to see an exhibition-at-large by travelling to the stations themselves.
All-in-all, The Lifeboat Station Project has become much greater than Jack’s initial idea and vision, a journey which he now refers to as his life’s work.
Hastings RNLI Women, September 2018, 12×10 inch Clear Glass Ambrotype