‘(In Britain) one out of seven manual workers is an immigrant’[1]. This was the opening line for ‘A seventh man’, John Berger’s book published in 1975. More than forty years later, 9.4 million people living in the UK were born abroad.[2] The migrant is indeed the emblematic figure of a rising global mobility in a context of capitalist crisis.[3] Lately, the migrant has also became a target for right-wing politicians who foster paranoid xenophobia in order to gain the electorate.
On their part, sensationalistic mainstream media and humanitarian NGO’s tend to promote consumable images in order to raise awareness about (against?) migration. Yet as argued by Giorgio Agamben, this practice can be read ‘as a form of depoliticization that ends up knowingly or unwittingly serving oppressive powers.’[4] Photographs of hundreds of people crossing borders in despair, a dead child in a beach and other catastrophic events can show victims but without making the connection with specific western policies, such as those of austerity or military intervention. In this context, the renowned Magnum photographer Chris Steele-Perkins attempts to challenge the conventional rhetoric on migration with his current exhibition ‘The New Londoners’. This work is an ambitious collection and celebration of modern multicultural Britain. During four years, Steele-Perkins searched for settled families in London with at least one member born abroad. Figure 1. Museum of Migration, [website] New Londoners Installation, Chris Steele-Perkins, Photograph, Museums of Migration. Initially, Steele-Perkins planned to cover all the nationalities recognized by the United Nations. However, nations and nationalities are not as static as they seem, ‘national borders loosen and tighten’[5] according to historical and economic contexts. Some citizens belong to countries that do not have official recognition. This complexity led Steele-Perkins to change his strategy: ‘what was a useful guide became a bit of a box ticking exercise – why rule out Chagos Island and not Palau? In the end I have photographed 164 families from around 187 countries, some, like Kurdistan have their own identity if not their own physical state.’[6] A selection of 70 prints is currently exhibited at The Museums of Migrations. The pictures are distributed around the gallery in two rows alternating landscape and portrait formats. With unframed pictures simply pinned on the wall, the display generates a welcoming feeling. A reasonable A3 size and a large depth of field provide sharp and comprehensible detail in every inch of the image. Figure 2 and 3. The New Londoners, [website] The New Londoners, Chris Steele-Perkins, Photograph. The first impression of the exhibition is quite colourful but with an elegant atmosphere. Two repetitive features help us to create a sense of unity: first, formal and pristine social spaces around people’s houses are used as the favourite location for the pictures. Second, families pose playfully in groups in front of the camera but scattered throughout the space, improving the sense of perspective. The concept of family is used in a broad sense including single parents, gay couples, extended families and groups of friends. The rhetoric of clothes, hairstyles, musical instruments and sport gadgets differentiates the personality of each member of the family. While in one picture a kid is wearing a fencing uniform and wielding his sword (South Korea, USA & Mexico), in another a drum is placed under a loft bed (Lesotho, Jamaica & South Africa). For some people wearing traditional clothes was important to emphasize their heritage, but for others posing in front of a national flag was preferred. A mix of cultural decoration, modern furniture, elegant mirrors and electronic devices speaks a lot about their backgrounds. Generally, it creates a sense of a middle class aesthetic going from modern minimalist to colourful. It is possible to argue that The New Londoners’ aesthetic might reflect the contemporary shift from national to global audiences in the art market. This can be problematic. According to some critics, what was a celebration of cultural pluralism in the art scene might be turning into a ‘one cultural form […] being ‘enforced on all’’[7]. It is clear that Steele-Perkins attempts to challenge the mediatic representation of the poor migrant who is always living in extreme conditions and shows them in similar context that a common English (white) family would live. Yet this approach might also reinforce the idea that there is one proper way to live and be considered British. Steele-Perkins, however, has included more complexity to this project by making the whole series available through a website. A friendly home page exhibits all the families’ portraits. Once you pick a family, it led you to more pictures of the same shooting. These additional photographs unmask, in some way, Steele-Perkins presence and reveal his direction of the photographic session. Also available is a friendly text describing their backgrounds, romances and their arrival to London. These features make the experience more engaging and highlight the multiples reasons and histories that there are behind a migrant. It is important to note the personal commitment of Steele-Perkins in this project. His own family’s portrait is included in the display. Steele-Perkins was born in Burma, Myanmar. His British father brought him to England at the age of two. Despite his mixed-raced origins, the father used to rail against non-white immigrants. This contraction between being loved and rejected by his own father, gave him a sense of the complexity of the British society. Although Steele-Perkins cannot recall being bullied harshly as a child, the repetitive question during his life, “Where are you from?” made him aware that somehow he was different. These sensible memories have influenced his photographic approach.[8] Through his career, Steele-Perkins has engaged with many topics going from social rituals to war. However, in contrast to the common sensationalistic approach of the mass media, he has produced thoughtful material. For instance, the photo book “Afghanistan: A Personal Homage” shows the people in their everyday life. Steele-Perkins portrayed them as human beings oppressed by the context of war. He shows them in joy, in sorrow and in ordinary events that go beyond of the stereotypical representation of Afghanistan. This respectful treatment of the other as equal is also present in The New Londoners. Bibliography Agamben G. What is an apparatus? and other essays. Stanford University Press; 2009 May 1. Berger, John and Mohr, Jean. A seventh man. London: Verso, 2010. Charlesworth, J. J., "Global versus Local." ArtReview, [website], November 2013, <artreview.com/features/november_2013_feature_global_versus_local_by_jj_charlesworth_1>. Accessed 26 April 2019. Demos, TJ. The migrant image: The art and politics of documentary during global crisis. Duke University Press, 2013. Steele-Perkins, Chris. The New Londoners, The New Londoners - an introduction by Chris Steele-Perkins [website],2019 <https://thenewlondoners.com/pages/about> Accessed 26 April 2019. UK Parliament Website, ‘Migration Statistics’, House of Commons Library [website], 11 December 2018, <https://researchbriefings.parliament.uk/ResearchBriefing/Summary/SN06077#fullreport> accessed 26 April 2019. Zarzycka, Marta. Gendered tropes in war photography: mothers, mourners, soldiers. Routledge, 2016. [1] John Berger and Jean Mohr. A seventh man. London: Verso, 2010. p 16 [2] UK Parliament Website, ‘Migration Statistics’, House of Commons Library [website], 11 December 2018, <https://researchbriefings.parliament.uk/ResearchBriefing/Summary/SN06077#fullreport> accessed 26 April 2019. [3] J. J. Charlesworth, "Global versus Local." ArtReview, [website], November 2013, <artreview.com/features/november_2013_feature_global_versus_local_by_jj_charlesworth_1>. Accessed 26 April 2019. [4] Cited by TJ Demos in Demos, T. J. The migrant image: The art and politics of documentary during global crisis. Duke University Press, 2013. [5] Marta Zarzycka, Gendered tropes in war photography: mothers, mourners, soldiers. Routledge, 2016. [6] Chris Steele-Perkins, The New Londoners, The New Londoners - an introduction by Chris Steele-Perkins [website],2019 <https://thenewlondoners.com/pages/about> Accessed 26 April 2019 [7] JJ. Charlesworth, Global versus Local. ArtReview, November 2013, <https://artreview.com/features/november_2013_feature_global_versus_local_by_jj_charlesworth_1/>, Accessed 26 April 2019. [8] Chris Steele-Perkins, op.cit.
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