Celebrating Exeter – The Organic Way

Organic, an Exeter-based performance and content marketing agency and consultancy, recently celebrated their 10th anniversary, and commissioned Instagram social influencer Paperboyo to capture some of the city’s most unique sights. 

Rich McCor, better known by his Instagram alias Paperboyo (Instagram.com/paperboyo), is a photographer and social media influencer who uses creativity and the power imbued in social platforms to tell stunning visual stories.

With over 125,000 Instagram followers, Paperboyo’s creations celebrate cities and their history through innovative, outside-of-the-box thinking. Just as Organic help clients fuse their projects with a clever intersection between technology with creativity, so too does Paperboyo. As someone who embodies the Organic ethos so well, what better way to champion our hometown and new flagship office than invite the man himself?

Paperboyo took the brief to celebrate the city by looking at some of our most famous landmarks and other lesser known stories that make our city special.

The Exeter Cathedral
This image channels the magic inherent in Exeter’s stunning Cathedral. Paperboyo captured a little slice of bliss; as you look up at the vaulted ceilings towards the stunning stained glass windows at the far end, the scene captivates and stirs the imagination. It seems the Cathedral had a lasting effect on a certain Exeter University alumni named J.K. Rowling, as well.

Paperboyo commented: “Exeter is the perfect city to wander around and let it lead you down into its hidden areas and historical sites.”



General Buller
The statue of General Buller, who won a Victoria Cross in the Boer War, is now regularly decorated with traffic cones during fresher’s week, graduation week (and even weeks with no events whatsoever). While we can neither confirm nor deny J.K. Rowling’s involvement, the traffic cone has become a student tradition that is now enshrined into Exeter University.



Roman/City Wall
The city walls defined Exeter’s existence for centuries. It was within this area that the Romans lived, in which the Saxons settled, that the Danes destroyed, which Alfred the Great liberated, that William the Conqueror laid siege to, which was besieged during the English Civil War and that was bombed during World War Two – the fact that it’s still standing is a testament to the resiliency of Exeter’s long-standing influence in the region.

Paperboyo commented: “During a downpour, I happened to be walking through Rougemont Gardens for a shortcut, but stopped under a tree for shelter. I had the whole garden to myself. With William the Conqueror’s castle walls behind me and landscaped garden in front of me – it wasn’t a bad spot to hide from the rain.”



Organic’s Flagship Office – Southernhay Studios (The Old Hospital)
As a throwback to the building’s historical roots, Paperboyo channelled the watchful eye of The Old Hospital’s infirmary staff. Steeped in rich, historical significance, the building we now call home represented the heart of Exeter’s vitality. As the black figure gazes down at us from her perched view, some say she still watches over the site to this day (though, for our sake, we hope not!).

Embracing Change & Creativity
The idea of embracing change and using creativity to humanise technology is central to the essence of Organic. We hope these images have brought a spark to sites or places you’ve grown accustomed to seeing. As a marketing agency we embrace every new challenge with fresh eyes, and saw in Paperboyo’s art a bit of ourselves. As part of our new office launch, we hoped to capture the history and charm of Exeter through visual storytelling and, in part, to tell the story of whom we are at Organic. Hopefully this series will help you realise that, wherever you are or whatever you do, it’s not what you see – it’s how you see it.

Working with a creative influencer like Paperboyo is the first in a series of initiatives Organic is embarking on to celebrate the brand and new premises in both Exeter and Covent Garden. You can see his full collection of images on the Organic Instagram (@showwithorganic).