Below the Surface

Let your pictures tell the story

“Below the surface” is a photographic project shedding light on the real life of young people in African and African-Caribbean communities in London, the life below the surface of public perception.

We gave disposable cameras to youngsters from various areas, communities and backgrounds in London, including young offenders and those at risk of social exclusion, with the task to document one day of his/her life.

The cameras were then collected and the images processed.

Involving some of the (volunteering) youngsters further, the processed images were then mounted and prepared for the exhibition/installation at the AACDD's 2011 Festival @ Bargehouse.

The installation is a large picture wall, a collage of life’s colourful facets within the African and African-Caribbean communities in London. The project tells a story of what we normally don’t see, a story of the struggle with social prejudice and misunderstanding, of hope and expectations, of families and relationships, told by young individuals from their point of view; thus giving us a unique insight into life below the surface.

The project also wanted to provide young people with the opportunity to discover photography as a means of self-expression and to explore the arts as a form of communication.

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