WHEN Shy Burhan turned 40 she had, in her own words, “a bit of a meltdown”.

“I didn’t have a partner or children, I felt a lot of pressure for my life to be a certain way,” she says. “I decided to create a bucket list of things to do in my 40th year. I’ve now done half of them, and I feel a lot more positive about being 40. Now I see it as something to celebrate.”

To mark her milestone birthday, the Bradford photographer decided to use her camera to capture other people turning 40 this year. She will exhibit 40 portraits in total. Shy has been busy with her ‘Forty’ project since her birthday earlier this year, and the first 20 portraits will be on display at Saltaire Festival next month. Now Shy is appealing for more people to take part.

“I was inspired by American photographer Imogen Cunningham who, when she turned 90, documented over 100 90-year-olds in really powerful black and white images,” says Shy. “I liked the idea of linking people by their age.

“I really want this project to celebrate diversity; I’d love to work with people from different backgrounds to reflect the homogenous society of 2018. I’m particularly looking for people from various ethnic backgrounds and people with disabilities, from sporting backgrounds, farming communities, Goths - anyone who feels under-represented and would like a platform to stand up and be proud of their place in society.”

Adds Shy: “I’ve met lots of people through doing this; some, like me haven’t had children yet, some have been through illness, love and loss. Being the same age puts us all on a level playing-field.

“People have really taken it to their hearts. The portraits have evolved into something reflecting not only our Zeitgeist, but people as individuals too.”

Each person who is photographed has an hour-long interview with Shy at her Shipley home. “I ask them all the same 40 questions - anything from what’s your favourite colour or what advice would you give your younger self to whether Europe is more important than the UK and who’s your favourite Kardashian,” says Shy. “It gives me an idea of who they are, and helps me create a concept. An element of their answers ends up in their portrait, and I also weave in people’s life stories, sometimes with props and iconography.

“It’s interesting talking to people about the choices they have made. Some feel like they’ve lost a sense of their own life, others can’t believe they are 40. Some have savings, some don’t. Some people reach 40 and feel ‘Is this it?’ For others, it marks the start of something new.

“The portraits are taken in a studio in my home. This allows them to come to my house and get to know me. There’s an element of trust involved.

“It’s an absolute privilege to talk to people about their lives and experiences; it can get very emotional. What transpires are some very powerful portraits conceived from their stories.”

One portrait, of a woman with long white hair holding a stone, has a Game of Thrones vibe. “This is Emma Bonfield, she’d never even seen Game of Thrones!” smiles Shy. “She told me she had major issues trying to conceive a child, she underwent IVF treatment then two years ago she had a baby. I kept thinking of Easter, and symbols of birth and fertility. The ‘stone’ she’s holding is a bath salt dragon egg, and she wore a fabulous wig.”

Particularly striking is an image of a couple wrapped up in bandages. “This is Chris and Lucy Hall. About two years ago Chris started suffering mental health problems, out of the blue, and had a breakdown. His wife, Lucy, was his rock. I wanted to treat their experience with reverence, and reflect the tenderness and intimacy of their love and support for each other. The bandages symbolise healing,” says Shy.

In another powerful image, Dr Amina Ahmed is photographed firing a crossbow and wearing a T-shirt bearing the words “I Killed Cancer”.

“When she was pregnant with her second child, she felt unwell. It turned out the baby had kicked one of three cancerous tumours in her stomach, and she was told it was terminal”, says Shy. “Seven years later, she is alive and well, and she says had it not been for the support of her husband and family she would not be here. I wanted to capture her strength in the portrait, the crossbow is a nod to Diana, goddess of the hunt.

“Amana is a strong woman in recovery. Her message is: ‘I killed cancer, with the love of my family’.”

Sharon Frost is photographed against the flag of Europe, symbol of the EU. “Sharon is a chef and, like many others in her profession, she’s concerned about how Brexit will affect it,” says Shy. “She loves Europe and feels it is being carved up. The knives are a symbol of that, and are tools of her trade.

“With the iconography, I was inspired by a take on Grant Wood’s famous American Gothic painting by African-American photographer Gordon Parks, who photographed an African-American cleaner at the US embassy against the American flag.”

Shy, whose portrait will also be in the exhibition, says the project enables those taking part to take time out for themselves. “It focuses on them, and in some cases a time in their life before kids or marriage,” she says. “Everyone is different; some don’t want to look at the camera, others look at it head on. No two portraits are the same.”

The first 20 images will be exhibited at the Holding Space, John Street, Saltaire, from September 7-16. The remaining 20 will go on display in February, 2019 at the same venue.

“I’m working with Anne McNeil at the Impressions Gallery on choosing portraits to exhibit,” says Shy. “Illuminate Bradford are featuring my images as part of this year’s festival, and they will be on the Big Screen Bradford too. I’d also like to get involved with next year’s Saltaire Arts Trail.”

Shy has applied for Arts Council funding and would like to release a book of all the portraits she’s taking this year. Everyone taking part in Forty will have a free print of their portrait, signed by Shy and mounted.

“I reached out nationwide with this and it has really captured people’s imaginations. One lady came over from Italy to have her portrait done,” says Shy.

“In 2018, being 40 is very different from how it was 80 years ago. It still seems quite young now. People are living longer, we’re all different shapes, we have different outlooks on life and we have different neuroses. What unites us in this project is that we are all 40, or about to turn 40.”

* To take part, people must have been born between September 1, 1977, and December 31, 1978.

For more information email Shy Burhan at info@shybphotography.co.uk or visit shybphotography.com