Long Walk Home

Photographer Robbie Lawrence spent five years traveling through Scotland and the United States to document the Highland Games - and in the process, uncovered a much deeper story about identity, myth, and belonging. His two-volume book, Long Walk Home, is the result of that long search.

What began as a straightforward cultural project quickly shifted. Lawrence found that the Highland Games, often framed as ancient Scottish rituals, were anything but static. In diaspora communities across the U.S., he saw traditions reshaped and reinterpreted, carrying as much emotional weight as those in Scotland.

By mixing images from both countries, he makes it almost impossible to tell where each frame was taken - a deliberate challenge to the idea that cultural authenticity must be tied to birthplace.

Three years into shooting, Lawrence scrapped nearly all of his early work. The images felt too romantic, too close to the picturesque myths of Scotland he hoped to question.

Starting over, he focused on quieter, human moments: athletes preparing in muddy fields, families gathering, small gestures that reveal how community is built rather than inherited.

The project unfolds in two parts - one book of documentary scenes, one of portraits - accompanied by an essay from poet John Burnside. Together, they circle a central question: What does it mean to belong to a place - and who gets to define that belonging?

Though the project explores global Scottish identity, it is also deeply personal. Living in London for years, Lawrence felt distanced from his own roots. Through photographing others searching for connection, he found his own “long walk home.”