ACTIVISM AND IMAGE

Activism is captured by photography around the world, photographs have been uses to document happening around the world for decades. Alex Beldea a Huddersfield graduate and Phd Researcher held a talk on his practice around activism and the image accompanied by guest speaker DANIEL CASTRO GARCIA .

Beldea showed work form his documentary practice 'The Long Wait' on refugees and their 8 year limbo in Tunisia staying in refugee camps. After the war erupted in Libya on 20th February 2011 thousands upon thousands of people searched a better life in the neighbouring country. Alex's practice documents the men and their journey along with their own photography and documentation from their travels.

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Alex captured the men as them showing their travels, upset and desperation within their eyes. The series contains protest signage from the men, which Alex has layered the text over his own imagery biding their work together showing his solidarity to the men and the fight for a better life.

Many of Alex documentary practises are around migration, minority groups yet Alex also maintains respect within his practice in my opinion no way exploiting them, more showing the world their resilience, determination and empowerment .

'Valid for Travel' another amazing project by Alex focus on the negative stereotype of refugees in particular them from Syria migrating the uk. In 2011 the Syrian people began a protest agains their government. Along with ISIS getting larger many men women and children feed their home to find a more piece-full life, around 3.6 million people have left their home in Syria to embark on a journey to a life they deserve.

'Valid for Travel' documents Syrians personal stores, keep-safes, family photography they have chosen to bring all the way to the UK.

The struggle refugees endure to fleeing their home but to still remain possession of their family photographs is something that really interested me within this project, as my own practice is focusing on family photography and the importance. Photographs hold memory, within just one 1/125 of a second captured within the object they can hold a lifetime of memories.

“Photography since its invention, has played an important role in aiding the construction of family image and family memory while also evoking a certain sense of belonging for the member towards their family’s” (Erkonan,2016 p1)

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DANIEL CASTRO GARCIA

Guest lecture today long side Beldea with a similar documentary Practice around activism and image focusing on refugees. Castro Garcia begin photographing when looking at a friend’s photo book collection in particular Robert Frank (1924–2019). For those not familiar with Franks work he was a Swiss photographer and documentary filmmaker well known for his photo-book 'The Americans' in the mid-1950's along with other photographer featuring in the book.

Castro Garcia created his own photo-book 'Foreigner' designed like a passport cover, red and blue stitching to bind and wrapped in a survival blanket. The detail put into the aesthetic and symbol of this photo book along shows Daniels dedication to his work and the refugee men her works with.

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Castro Garcia set upon a trip across Europe exploring the refugees trying to migrate here. Castro Garcia worked in Scilly for a while as a 'support worker' in a refugee camp for boys. His photo documents of his several trips and the re photographing of people month apart show the real strain in witch these people face just to seek a life we all deserve with peace and basic human rights. The work was co created with his partner as well as the men he photographed. Castro Garcia spoke about the photographs them self being a equal partnership in what or how things were photographed to get their story out.

He curated micro project within this body of work going back to the homes of the men he collaborated with in Sicily photo documenting their homeland in witch they left.

The image play on Daniels website showcasing his work was something that stuck me and I'm sure it was not an accident. He placed images from a camp in Calais, France of the fires the men set in a protest to be treat better, he documents the poor living conditions and then and the end of the series of images he placed a simple drawing of a map showing how close this camp in Calais, France is to us in the UK.

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The juxtaposition between the hectic and violent to the simple and calm image really stuck me. Us as British people in a wealthy country think of poor country and refugees we see on the media as far away from our land, yet these images show just how close to home this happened. Just how close people are to trying to gain a better existence for them and their family back home.

The power in the images Castro Garcia has curated are strong images showing the intimate details of the men and boys he collaborated with but placing a map where these horrific living conditions for these men have taken place hits the audience in a different way.

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Reference

Erkonan, S. (2016). Photography and the construction of family and memory [Photography and the construction of family and memory, Ankara University]. http://www.researchingcommunication.eu/book11chapters/C17_ERKONAN201516.pdf

Beldea , A. (2020). 'The Long Wait'. Alex Beldea. https://www.alexbeldea.co.uk/documentary-1#/the-long-wait/

Beldea , A. (2020). Valid for Travel. Alex Beldea. https://www.alexbeldea.co.uk/documentary-1#/valid-for-travel/

Figure List

Figure 1 -Beldea, A. (No date ). The Long Wait . [Photograph ]. https://www.alexbeldea.co.uk/documentary-1#/the-long-wait/.

Figure 2 -Beldea, A. (No date ). Valid for Travel . [Photograph ]. https://www.alexbeldea.co.uk/documentary-1#/valid-for-travel/.

Figure 3- Beldea, A. (No date ). Valid for Travel . [Photograph ]. https://www.alexbeldea.co.uk/documentary-1#/valid-for-travel/.

Figure 4- Castro Garcia, D. (2016). Foreigner. [Photobook]. http://www.danielcastrogarcia.com/foreignermigrationintoe

Figure 5- Castro Garcia, D. (No date). The Jungle, Calais. [Photograph]. http://www.danielcastrogarcia.com/thejunglecalais/ok2m1fj02j5oshjx65v8h1qqn99xy7.

Figure 6- Castro Garcia, D. (No date). The Jungle, Calais. [Photograph]. http://www.danielcastrogarcia.com/thejunglecalais/6sfjreltmytulwmhyz4z726i4z8gen.