Photograph by Danielle Francis
Very pleased to announce that my artwork ‘Dead in the water’ – 5,083 Gingerbread Refugees (2016) was voted no. 5 in the Salon des Refusés. This annual Exhibition of Artworks Rejected by the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition was held at Candid Arts Trust, Islington, London EC1V. Thank you to everyone who voted for me!
Top 12 based on general public votes
‘The destruction of the Calais ‘Jungle’ in October 2016, and the Dunkirk Grande-Synthe in April 2017, returned close to 10,000 people to homelessness. Despite the prominence of the camps in liberal and reactionary media alike, the fate of their one-time inhabitants is now slipping from public consciousness with all too predictable ease. In Transit, is pitched against precisely this collective amnesia. Bringing together some two hundred photographs, taken by Jacky Chapman and Janine Wiedel across 2016, the exhibition offers an urgent reminder of the camps’ existence, and a poignant testament to the people now moving ever more precariously to the edges of political agendas’. Review by Rosa Zimmermann for Photomonitor
“Refugee Week takes place every year across the world in the week around World Refugee Day on the 20 June. In the UK, Refugee Week is a nationwide programme of arts, cultural and educational events that celebrate the contribution of refugees to the UK, and encourages a better understanding between communities.
Refugee Week started in 1998 as a direct reaction to hostility in the media and society in general towards refugees and asylum seekers. An established part of the UK’s cultural calendar, Refugee Week is now one of the leading national initiatives working to counter this negative climate, defending the importance of sanctuary and the benefits it can bring to both refugees and host communities”. Refugee Week
Salvation Army International HQ
Gallery 101
101 Queen Victoria Street
London
EC4V 4EH
Mon – Fri 8:30am – 4:30pm
Free admission. Between St Pauls and the Tate Modern.
This year I submitted an uncharacteristically large piece of artwork to the Royal Academy summer show.
I take consolation in knowing that I’m following in the foot steps of great masters like Courbet, Manet and Pissarro, whose works were also rejected for the Great Salon Exhibition in 1863 Paris.
As a result, my installation, along with many others that were refused, is to be shown at the Salon des Refusés at Candid Arts Trust, 3-5 Torrens Street, Islington, London EC1V 1NQ from 1-4 June.
‘Dead in the water’ – 5,083 Gingerbread Refugees (2016)
The beginning of 2017 was punctuated by the announcement that 2016 had been the deadliest year on record for refugees and migrants crossing the Mediterranean, with most deaths occurring off the Greek and Italian coastlines.
I’m not a sculptor; I’m a photographer of 30 years. Even though I’ve photographed refugees and migrants in camps in northern France, I felt that my images captured only a small part of the story. In January 2017, I decided to make 5,083 tiny gingerbread men using a 2cm cookie cutter………..
Using air drying terracotta clay, each man was created taking well over two weeks to complete. The final body count was a family affair and the reality hit home to us all as the ginger bread men, women and children piled ever higher on our dining room table.
The last few left to glue down!
The resulting exhibition ‘In Transit’ had its initial viewing at The James Caird Hall at Dulwich College, London.
Sue Mulholland Director of Art, Dulwich College, records:
In Transit provided us with a platform to engage students across the curriculum in a debate about wider cultural, social and most importantly humanitarian issues that are too often skewed by social media and the press. Jacky and Janine’s sensitive and extremely well observed photos engaged our students from Year 6 to Year 13 in discussions about our national, and their own, responsibility for global problems.
The exhibition brings the migrant crisis to our doorstep; the powerful visuals evoke and provoke a reaction. These are insights and detail we are not used to seeing, the day to day living in the camps, the true reality of a refugee’s situation. The exhibition opens the door to wider conversations and deeper understanding. As well as invaluable educational stimulus across many subject areas (Geography, History, PSHE, RT, Art, Architecture, English), it teaches our students about their places in the world.
The Calais Jungle. All photographs by ©Jacky Chapman
‘La Linière’ camp, in Grande-Synthe, Dunkirk. All photographs by ©Jacky Chapman
I recently returned to ‘The Jungle’ to see what had become of it. The containers are still there…..the rest razed to the ground. Local aid agencies are now reporting that some 400 refugees/migrants are returning to Calais (approx. 15 per day) mainly teenagers and young adults. Police are still patrolling the jungle to prevent its resurgence. According to recent reports the mayor of Calais has banned the distribution of meals by aid agencies in an attempt to stop a new refugee camp starting up again.
All that remains of the once famous Calais Jungle. The containers are all that’s now visible.
Last night saw the opening of the 2nd British Life Photography awards at the Mall Galleries, London. The Gallery was packed and the photos, which celebrated British life in all of its many splendid ways, looked fantastic!
‘The British Life Photography Awards is a showcase for contemporary and imaginative images that capture the essence and spirit of British life, documenting real life through original, illuminating, thought provoking, humorous and poignant imagery’. Maggie Gowan BLPA Director.
I’m delighted to say that my image below was highly commended and hung on the gallery wall. All of the images are in the book (British Life Photography Awards Portfolio published by Dewi Lewis Publishing –Book).
Highly Commended in the Historic Britain Category.
A Future so bright…Young professional donning braces and shades. Photographed in 1989 towards the end of the ‘Yuppie’ era. The 1980’s saw the growth of the middle class and the creation of a large group of young urban professionals. I took this picture because of the play between the young confident male and the iconic image of John Wayne in the background. London, 1989.
During 1986, I documented Britain’s diverse social classes. Royal Ascot (dating back to 1711) and the Royal enclosure were obvious candidates. I attended on the third day (traditionally Ladies Day) where fancy hats, formal day dresses, top hats and tails are the order of the day.
In the Portraiture Category
This was one of the final images from the photo-shoot. I sought to capture the simplicity of two forms, showing tenderness and a loving bond between father and son, with no faces for distraction. Once shot, the image reminded me of Bill Brandt’s dynamic Nudes on the beach. As Brandt once said “…the lens produced anatomical images and shapes which my eyes had never observed”.
This was one of those nail-biting photo shoots where the journalist and I were given only a few minutes with Irons during his lunch break whilst he was in rehearsals. The result? A hand full of frames and an awful lot of praying! (Shot for the Times Educational Supplement). London, 1996.
The exhibition showing some of the best work runs from 7 – 13 March 2016 at Mall Galleries, London. Mall Galleries
Great to see my portrait of Dominic Davies, Director of Pink Therapy, up for auction for World AIDS Day tonight 7pm at The Cass, London Metropolitan University. The portrait was originally commissioned by Therapy Today in January 2015. Dom’s portrait is proudly sandwiched between Mel C, Ian McKellan and Michael Cashman. On the same wall sits Shirley Bassey, Gilbert and George and Rowan Williams – he’s up there with the greats! The exhibition and auction of celebrity portraits is to raise funds for Terrence Higgins Trust and will be overseen by Sotheby’s Auctioneer Mark Griffiths Jones.
Dominic Davies at his London home.
Face Up. At The Cass, London Metropolitan University
Jacky Chapman 