“Under the Big Top: Heartfelt Moments of Circus Life in Photos”

It’s challenging to determine where to begin with the experiences of Keiran Perry. The narrative of his “true hippie” upbringing in northern England, where Gary from next door unexpectedly fell through the kitchen ceiling while in a bathtub filled with water? His time spent studying nature photography in Blackpool, where the only genuine “nature” present consisted of seagulls and inebriated partygoers observed from the rooftops of the coastal town’s venues? His more recent deep dive into an off-grid community in the Scottish Highlands, exploring earth-based, shamanic knowledge? During a conversation over the phone as the photographer drives to Manchester to set up his latest exhibition at Village, the tales flow freely, each more eccentric than the previous one.

The sensible starting point, however, is Perry’s serendipitous encounter with the travelling circus that features in the pages of his new book, Smoke Filled Mirror. As the world transitioned back to ‘normal’ following the Covid pandemic, Perry made his way to Morecambe – another coastal town in Lancashire – in his van, acting on a recommendation from a friend. “It was pouring rain,” he recalls upon his arrival. “The rain was just crashing down off the ocean. I parked along the promenade and spotted this big top tent. Surrounding it in a circle were these caravans, shining like a lighthouse. It pulled me in, this little campsite, this little radiant heart.”

Perry exited his van to introduce himself, but as he approached the circus, a large dog emerged from the shadows. “Picture a wolf, but much sturdier and heavier,” he remarks. “I remember seeing this hot dog on the ground, drizzled with ketchup and American mustard, and this dog just swallowed it whole and kept walking towards me. I thought, ‘Oh no. What am I doing here?’” Fortunately, a voice called out from the darkness as the dog circled around him – it was the daughter of the Bulgarian family that owned and operated the circus. “Don’t mind Star,” she shouted. “He’s friendly.” Minutes later, Perry found himself in her caravan enjoying a cup of tea, and he was instantly made to feel welcome. Star, in the meantime, settled on Perry’s lap, and his furry face became the opening image in Smoke Filled Mirror.

The photographer’s initial experience with the circus spanned two weeks, but he would reconnect with it multiple times over the subsequent two years as it journeyed across the north of England and Scotland. It felt like joining “one large family,” he expresses, comprising a rich blend of cultures from South and Central America, Ukraine, Russia, Poland, Kyrgyzstan, and beyond. Each individual constituted a vital component of the circus itself, he notes. “It was akin to a massive living entity that requires extensive care to function properly.” As depicted in Perry’s photographs, entertainers also took on roles as cooks, technicians, and mechanics. “The trapeze artists were soaring through the air at night, like a crystalline chandelier or some legendary being, and the day after, they were grilling sausages and eggs for everyone on the barbecue.”

Perry, who spent his formative years in Colne and Burnley, embodying “the opposite of a London lifestyle,” relocated to London after completing college to pursue a career as a photographer’s assistant, andeventually began to pursue his own projects. For a few years, he became engrossed in the rapid, competitive landscape of establishing a profession in the city. Then Covid struck. “I spent a significant amount of time at home, and my girlfriend and I separated, leading me to a point of deep self-reflection,” he elaborates. “It felt as though I lacked control over the direction my life was heading. I was merely being carried along, and within that current, there are turbulent waters, causing fragments of oneself to be lost along the way.”

This realization led Perry down two interconnected paths. On one side, he found himself attracted to the spiritual insights he continues to embrace today, which focus on “slowing down and tuning in to yourself, attuning to your intuition and your emotions… that inner voice within your body”. Conversely, he constructed a shed at the rear of his garden alongside his father and leased out his house, utilizing this newfound liberty to roam in his van. Thus, he arrived in Morecambe, at the circus, which provided a vaguely familiar contrast to his frenetic life in London.

[At the circus] everything’s metallic and fabric and flame… I could sense home, I could nearly perceive fragments of my youth, my past – Keiran Perry

Having grown up in a large and “pretty impoverished” family up north, Perry acknowledges that life was tumultuous in its own manner. “But everyone just came together.” Even when Gary tumbled through the ceiling while in a bathtub: “It was amusing, and there was a lot of unity.” The circus mirrored this atmosphere. “Everything’s damaged and perpetually in need of repair. Everything’s metallic and fabric and flame, rather harsh and rugged,” he describes. “I could sense home, I could nearly perceive fragments of my youth, my past. I found that incredibly enriching. It pushed me to engage that inner voice within my body, rather than merely occupying my mind.”

Frequently, Perry didn’t even capture images. He would merely socialize, distribute flyers, and assist the circus performers in arranging seating. “I probably got in their way a few times,” he chuckles. “And they labor so diligently. To clarify, it’s an extremely tough profession, but that’s what fortifies their strength and connects them.” When he eventually brought his camera into play, he regarded it more as an instrument for interaction than anything else, a means to initiate discussions and foster new connections. For Perry, this is the essence of it all: integrating into a community, being receptive to their lifestyle, and valuing a genuine experience over capturing the ideal photo. 

Ultimately, of course, the closeness of the photographer’s bonds radiates in the visuals themselves, whether showcasing motorcycles circling the ‘Globe of Death’, or various generations of Ukrainian refugees sharing a heartfelt moment in their caravan. In the circus environment, he states, he experienced “this remarkable, secure atmosphere of sharing and affection. Those instances… you can’t orchestrate that. You have to be included in it, not separated from it.”

This notion of genuineness in Smoke Filled Mirror arises also from a place of adoring what you engage in and connecting with that instinctive “mind within your body,” Perry posits. For him, this evolved through his interactions with the circus: “I was extending outward into the world, particularly after the pandemic, but it was equally an internal exploration as well. It made me truly present and vibrantly alive, rather than too much in my thoughts.”

From this journey, Perry recognized that fundamentally there are two routes in life for an aspiring photographer. “Both paths lead to nowhere… you might envision a destination, but it will never turn out that way.” Despite this, the road you choose to “nowhere” holds significance. “Don’t get entangled in your psyche, and its inner critique, as that will steer you in the wrong direction,” he advises. “However, there’s another route abundant with passion and adventure.” What’s the method to discover it? “It involves tuning into your inner self, heeding that soft voice in the back of your mind.”

“There’s no need to be someone else. That’s your unique asset. No one can be you better than you can.”

Keiran Perry’s Smoke Filled Mirror is currently available through New Dimension, in cooperation with Pendle Press. The volume is curated by Sherif Dhaimish, featuring art direction and design by Alex Currie, and creative direction by Ben Goulder.

The corresponding exhibition launches at Village in Manchester on 17 January 2025, with an inaugural event and book signing from 6pm-9pm, and continues until February 16.⁣⁣