Featuring: Sylwia Ciszewska-Peciak, Yuxi Hou, Ismail Khokon, Marcin Forys and the Central European Photography Club participants
HOMELAND is moving to Surface, Nottingham, 1 December – 16th of December
Opening Night: 1st of December 6-8 pm
Centrala and Surface are pleased to present Homeland, an exhibition following an 18-month residency of the photographer and visual artist Paulina Korobkiewicz at Centrala. Homeland addresses themes of political identity, belonging, memory and representation among migrant communities in West Bromwich and Hyson Green. Accompanying Korobkiewicz’s work, Homeland will also include photographic projects from Sylwia Ciszewska-Peciak, Yuxi Hou, Ismail Khokon, and Marcin Forys, participants of the Central European Photography Club, with whom she worked closely during her residency, through mentoring and sharing experiences.
The exhibition will reflect on the visibility of the communities within the areas of focus (West Bromwich & Hyson Green) and serve as a platform to share experiences of migration from various perspectives. Korobkiewicz’s photographic series explores the visibility of the migrant community within public space and the importance of it.
Homeland is departing from the research project Post-Socialist Britain?: Memory, Representation and Political Identity amongst German, Polish and Ukrainian Immigrants in the UK, a large-scale research project in collaboration with the University of Birmingham and the Nottingham Trent University exploring how and if memory is linked to political identity, and how this is manifested in a different national context.
Paulina Korobkiewicz (b. 1993, Suwałki, Poland) is a photographer and visual artist. She earned her First-Class Honours BA Degree in Fine Art Photography from Camberwell College of Arts in 2015. Her work has been the subject in exhibitions internationally and has been featured in a variety of publications, including The Guardian, Wallpaper* Magazine, British Journal of Photography, Hapax Magazine, Photomonitor and It’s Nice That. She is the winner of Camberwell Book Prize 2016, and was shortlisted for prizes such as Bart Tur Photobook Prize, Magnum Graduate Photographers Award and Prix Pictet. She lives and works in London.
https://www.paulinakorobkiewicz.com/
Yuxi Hou (b.2004) is a documentary visual storyteller born in Beijing and is currently based in Nottingham. As a new immigrant and young adult herself, she’s constantly reflecting on her marginalised position in society, exploring themes such as growth, identity, migration, memories and family through a sensitive account of human interactions in distinct communities.
Ismail Khokon (b. 1984) is a British Bangladeshi socially engaged artist and photographer who explores the important relationship between identity, migration, heritage, displacement, health, well-being and environmentalism. He utilises his own lived experience to collaborate with others and highlight the experiences of marginalised communities, and challenge the prevailing concepts of multicultural Britain.
Sylwia Ciszewska-Peciak (b.1989) is a Polish photographer based in West Bromwich. She recently graduated from the Academy of Photography in Krakow. Putting down roots in the new place led to her exploring the cosmopolitan nature of her new home by recording life on the street. In her street photography, she aims to capture stories: those candid, fleeting moments when people are most themselves, moments of introspection, ambiguity, joy and humour. The birth of her first daughter led her to documentary photography, using it as an instrument for deep self-reflection and self-therapy.
Marcin Forys (b. 1979) is a freelance Polish photographer in Nottingham. His work is influenced mainly by sociological aspects, and his main subjects are the urban landscape and portraits. Through his visual storytelling, he creates awareness and influences his audience, leaving them with unanswered questions showing simple urban life.
Upcoming collage workshop with Paulina Korobkiewicz and Ismail Khokon, Crafting Collective Memory
Join artists Paulina Korobkiewicz and Ismail Khokon in a Collage-Making Workshop.
Unleash your creativity and contribute to their current exhibition at Surface Gallery with your unique perspective on ‘Homeland’. Choose a background, use your own imagery or select from copies of exhibited artwork, and recycled materials.
Create a collage that reflects your unique perspective on the theme of home and contribute to our current exhibition at the Surface Gallery. Explore the power of collective memory through collage in a hands-on, engaging session and add your work to the display!
What to expect:
– Use the provided materials and tools to create a unique response to the theme of home
– Bring your own paper materials, photographs, and graphics. Choose from a variety of backgrounds, recycled magazine pages, or coloured paper and card.
What to bring with you:
– Any personal paper materials you’d like to incorporate into your collage
– Your own photographs or imagery that resonates with the theme of home
– Newspapers, graphics, or any other elements you wish to include in your artwork