STAYING POWER: PHOTOGRAPHS OF BLACK BRITISH EXPERIENCE 1950s to 1990s

Staying Power: Photographs of Black British Experience 1950s-1990s 
16 February – 24 May 2015 
vam.ac.uk/page/s/staying-power/
High Street Kensington, 1976, © Al Vandenberg

This spring the V&A will present a display of over 50 recently acquired photographs that explore the experiences of black people in Britain in the latter half of the 20th century, enhanced by excerpts from oral histories gathered by Black Cultural Archives. Over the last seven years the V&A has been working with Black Cultural Archives to acquire photographs either by black photographers or which document the lives of black people in Britain, a previously under-represented area in the V&A’s photographs collection. Funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), the Museum has been able to collect 118 works by 17 artists ranging from Yinka Shonibare’s large-scale series Diary of a Victorian Dandy (1998), to studies of elaborate headties worn by Nigerian women, by J.D. Okhai Ojeikere, to black and white street photography of 1970s London by Al Vandenberg.

Staying Power will showcase a variety of photographic responses to black British experience. On display will be intimate portrayals of British-Caribbean life in London in the 1960s-70s by Neil Kenlock, Armet Francis, Dennis Morris and Charlie Phillips. Music, style and fashion are documented in Raphael Albert’s depictions of the black beauty pageants he organised from the 1960s to the 1980s to help celebrate the growing black community in Britain and Norman ‘Normski’ Anderson’s colourful depictions of vibrant youth culture of the 1980s and 90s.

The display also features more conceptual explorations of race and identity. Yinka Shonibare’s series, Diary of a Victorian Dandy, depicts the artist playing the role of a dandy. The work demonstrates Shonibare’s identification with the dandy as an outsider or foreigner who uses his flamboyance, wit and style to penetrate the highest levels of society, which would otherwise be closed to him. Maxine Walker also draws attention to racial stereotypes by photographing herself in a variety of guises. In her Untitled series (1995) she presents herself with different skin tones and hairstyles as though they were instantaneous transformations made in a photo booth.

The V&A’s Photographs Collection – The V&A was the first museum to collect and exhibit photography as an art form. It now holds the UK’s national collection of art photography, which is one of the largest and most important in the world. The V&A has over 500,000 photographs in its collections, ranging from works created in 1839, when the medium was first invented, to the present.

Black Cultural Archives – Founded in 1981, Black Cultural Archives’ mission is to collect, preserve and celebrate the heritage and history of Black people in Britain. They opened the UK’s first dedicated Black heritage centre in Brixton, London in July 2014, enabling greater access to the archive collection and providing dedicated learning spaces and an exciting programme of exhibitions and events that explore British history from a unique perspective. The archive collection offers insight into the history of people of African and Caribbean descent in Britain and includes personal papers, organisational records, rare books, ephemera, photographs, and a small collection of objects. bcaheritage.org.uk

LOOSE IN LONDON: DOING THE CHIMP WALK

Many of you have commented on the amount of things Victoria and I seem to cram into each and every day whenever we’re in London. It’s true – we’re on a mission, we’re only there for a period of time and we want to see and experience all that we can. More often than not, we forget that we’re only human (and of a certain age) and so we push ourselves,expecting our bodies to respond to all we ask of it and expecting no unwanted consequences in return.  Boy, are we surprised when, by the end of a busy day, we become aware of our bodies balking at the onslaught and teaching us a lesson by making us aware of aches, pains and diminished energy. Our feet, naturally, become the biggest complainers. Slowly, over the course of a day, the toll on our bodies becomes evident, especially in the way we walk.

Having a distinctive walk of one’s own is not always a bad thing. After all, there have been many famous walks through history – there’s the Cake Walk of the 1940’s

The Camel Walk
The Crip Walk
And of course the Moon Walk
Unfortunately, the walk Victoria and I tend to develop by day’s end is not quite so pretty. It’s a gait that comes from sore backs, aching hips and, the biggest culprit, sore feet. All those elements combine to have a strange effect on our gait at the end of a London sightseeing day.  You can watch it here.  Yes, dear Reader, Victoria and I are now officially The Chimp Sisters, at least when we’re in England. 

LOOSE IN LONDON: A RAINY DAY IN LONDONTOWN

Victoria here to tell you about our Monday the first of September 2014.  And there we were in London, just like we lived there, ready to run some errands…battling traffic, negotiating construction sites, and trying to remember which way to look before stepping off the curb.

Sloane Square
Our first errand was to find batteries for Kristine’s Camera…a futile search as it turned out.,  But we started off from Sloane Square with all the energy we could muster, and boarded a bus for Tottenham Court Road, near some camera shops off Oxford Street.

newest versions of the red London busses

Riding the bus is one of My Favorite Pastimes in London. Have you noticed what a long list this is? I love everything in London.  The tube is usually more efficient, but the scenery is not much!

But, it was threatening rain. We all know that if you carry an umbrella, it won’t be a deluge, but my umbrella was safely tucked away in the hotel.  So first goal upon departing the bus at Oxford Street, was a cheap umbrella.  And it worked, for the most part,  We had a bit of drizzle now and then but by the time I juggled my purse, etc. and got the darn thing raised, it stopped. Hooray!

We ducked into a Primark store to check out shoes for Kristine’s poor feet and for me to look for a purse of a size somewhere between a satchel so large it held everything and was so heavy I couldn’t lift it — and a petite evening bag, perfect for an evening soiree at the Palace (too bad the invitation got lost in the mail).  We were both unsuccessful, for the most part, in finding what we wanted, though we had fun browsing around and trying on things.  But onward for the primary purpose of the day.

Primark

In the world of camera batteries, time had marched on from the last time Kristine had updated her photographic paraphernalia.  Two stores said Nyet. But at the third, a nicely-priced new camera seemed to tempt her and she went into conference mode with the clerk.

British Museum

Meanwhile, I was getting anxious about getting to the British Museum, where I needed to go to the Print Study Room and access a couple of documents I wanted to photograph.  So we made plans to meet up in the British Museum — no problem finding a pal in there, right???

To make a long story short, I found my documents, got my pics, and we actually met up — finding one another which was sort of a miracle since every single school child from France, Japan, and the U.S was in the museum that day.

Paper mosaic by Mrs. Delaney
We took a quick walkabout in the Enlightenment Gallery (click here) about which I have written before on this blog, To see my remarks from 2012, click here.
However, hunger drove us to the Museum Tavern, a pub, where we  have enjoyed ourselves before. The BM itself has lots of restaurants — and lots of noisy customers.  So we hurried across the street,and eagerly related our adventures, mine with the excellent service in the print room where I found exactly what I needed and Kristine’s new camera in all its glory.
The Museum Tavern, an oasis indeed

Kristine here: Picking up the story at the Museum Tavern, where we met and shared a table with an Englishman and his young son – as one does in London. We were forced, albeit gladly, to share the last table. We all ordered food – Victoria and I ordering the full English Breakfast – and three pints and then we were off, talking about America, Churchill, the Duke of Wellington, house prices, and many other things that I can no longer recall. A great time was had by all.

After lunch, we spent some time browsing at the Jarndyce Book and Print shop a few doors down and then we got a cab and rode back to the St. James’s area, as Victoria and I wanted to finalize the route we’d be taking the tour group on for our Sunday St. James’s Walk.

We made a few pit stops along the way, one of which was that venerable cheese shop, Paxton and Whitfield where we found Waterloo cheese! Thank goodness we had our cameras at the ready, or you’d never have believed it. Cheese.com tells us: Waterloo cheese is a mild, semi-soft cheese made by Anne and Andy Wigmore near Riseley, Berkshire in United Kingdom. The cheese is made from unpasteurised Guernsey milk sourced from a farm near Henley. A full-fat cheese, it has a fat content of 45%. Waterloo cheese is made using washed curd method, which tempers the acidity and contributes to a soft, gentle, buttery flavour. The characteristic yellow colour is due to the presence of natural carotene. The interiors have a creamy rich pate, slightly firm and flaky centre. The affinage period is between 4 and 10 weeks. Sarah Freedman, food writer and author of ‘The Real Cheese Companion’ has described Waterloo cheese as, “Waterloo is luscious and creamy with the sweetness of the rich milk and undertones of herbs and grass.”

Afterwards, we stopped into the atmospheric Three Crowns pub at 19 Babmaes Street and fortified ourselves with a rum and coke.

Eventually, we toddled our way over to St. James’s Square in order to nail down which house had been the former home of the Boehm’s, Number 16, where Henry Percy had delivered Wellington’s Waterloo Dispatch and the captured French Eagles to the Prince Regent. Number 16, it turned out, is today part of the East India Club.

Victoria stood on the sidewalk and gazed up at the building. The East India Club. I thought of feats of derring do and exotic locales and the large piece of British military history that now loomed before us. Here’s what the East India Club website has to say:

Waterloo 200 The original house in which the club was founded was noted for being the location where Wellington’s dispatch from waterloo was presented to the Prince Regent. In honour of this unique connection the club is pleased to be a founder member of Wateroo 200. further details can be found by visiting www.waterloo200.org

“Let’s go in,” Victoria said, ever the risk taker.

“We can’t!” I cried.

“Why ever not?” Victoria challenged.

“Er, because we’re not men, we don’t have waxed mustachios or pith helmets, or spiffy red uniforms and – most importantly – we’re not members.”

Victoria gave me a withering glance, “Since when has that ever stopped us?”

She had a point, and so we climbed the stairs, pushed the doors open and walked into the oak paneled lobby. Surprisingly, once we’d explained the reasons for our desire to see the inside of the Club, the man on duty was only too happy to answer our questions. Unfortunately, the room in which the Despatch was actually delivered – the current Club library – was undergoing renovations and thus was off limits. However, our host pointed out a book about the Club’s history and suggested that we sit on the leather couches and take our time looking through it.

After a while I began to wonder how the Club was still in existence.

“How is the Club still in existence?” I asked Victoria.

“What?”

“The East India Company is long gone, right? It was the members of that Company and those affiliated with it who were members of the original Club. If there’s no long an East India Company, where do they find members?”

It turns out that we found the answer a few pages on in the book:


All applications must be from gentlemen 18 years of age or older and must be presented on the official application form available from the Membership Secretary’s office or by downloading it here

The categories of membership are Town, Country and Overseas, and the rates vary according to category and age. Town membership applies to gentlemen who either have a residence or a place of business within a 50-mile radius of the clubhouse. In accordance with its constitution, membership of the East India is available only to gentlemen.


Leaving the Club, we walked some ways down the Square until we found this blue plaque to Byron’s daughter. It was whilst we were discussing Ada that a very dapper gentleman exited one of the houses and came to speak of us. He was Greek, but spoke perfect English and launched into fascinating detail regarding Byron and Ada. Victoria and I were enraptured. He then asked what had brought us to England and we told him about the Duke of Wellington Tour. This provided many more minutes of conversation between ourselves and the handsome, well turned out stranger. We were charmed . . . . . until of a sudden, his countenance hardened and, like the veriest religious zealot, he launched into a sermon on the evils of the world and how, in fact, the end of the world was near. Victoria and I exchanged sideways glances as he urged us to repent in order to secure our places at the second coming. With great haste, Victoria and I suddenly remembered an enormously important appointment that we were now quite late for and we took our leave just as fast as our confused little feet could carry us. 

It was a good thing that we were to meet two of the tour participants that night, Diane Perkins and Marilyn Gaston, for dinner at the Duke of Wellington Pub. By my reckoning, that made three pubs we’d be visiting that day and, boy, did Victoria and I need a drink by the time we’d fled St. James’s Square. 


Victoria and I, Marilyn and Diane (author Diane Gaston) had a great meal, many drinks, lots of Wellington talk and more laughs than could be considered decent by polite society. 

More Loose in London Coming Soon!

CAVORTING WITH THE AUSTENS IN ENGLAND

Victoria here, reporting on a sidelight of our recent Duke of Wellington Tour…see multiple posts we have already published and will be covering in more depth in the next few months.
Neither Chawton nor Steventon was in my itinerary for my three weeks in England last summer, But wherever I went, I found bits of Austenalia at hand.  I was surprised to see the shop closed, once Rohan’s, which filled the ground floor of Henry Austen’s former Henrietta Street house near Covent Garden.
The Blue Plaque marking Jane Austen’s visit was intact, but the building’s fate could not be determined in late August. If anyone hears what happens, please e-mail us!
Henrietta Street
Wandering through London, I found myself in Cheapside, where the Gardiners lived in Pride and Prejudice, and took the opportunity of visiting St. Mary-le-Bow.

St. Mary-le-Bow
To be a real Cockney, it is said, one must be born withing the sound of Bow Bells.

Altar, St. Mary-le-Bow
During London Open City Days, we toured the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Building, a place of many architectural wonders.  In Dunbar Court, formerly the India Office, I found a statue of Warren Hastings, Governor-General of Bengal 1773-1785.  Hastings is sometimes alleged to be the natural father of Jane Austen’s cousin, Elize de Feuillide, who named her only son after him.
Dunbar Court

Warren Hastings statue in Dunbar Court

Imagine my surprise when came upon the graves in Hamsptead of Eliza, her son, and her mother.

The gravestone, at St. John-at-Hampstead church, appeared tro be recently cleaned.  It honors Philadelphia Hancock (d. 1792, age 61), her grandson Hastings (d. 1801, age six), and Elizabeth Austen (Eliza Hancock de Feuillide Austen),  who was the wife of Jane’s brother Henry Austen. died at age 50 in 1813.
.

The lovely setting of the grave.

We visited Reading, in Berkshire, where we met author Beth Elliott, who is lucky enough to live nearby.  Click here for her website and news of her books.

Beth Elliott, Author of Regency Tales

 Beth kindly led us on a tour of the Forbury Gardens and the ruins of the Abbey.

Here, in the Abbey Gate, Jane Austen and her sister Cassandra attended a school about 1785.  

Reading Abbey was founded in 1121 by King Henry I, youngest son of William the Conqueror.  Igt was an important royal site for centuries until the Dissolution of the Monasteries by Henry VIII in 1539.

Considerable damage has occurred over the years, particularly from water. Currently, repairs are planned for the entire abbey complex, of which this is the only remaining intact building.

A fine series of carvings,called headstops, graced the building. I could not find identifications but one might assume they are kings, queens and saints????

18th Century view of the Abbey Gate before it was “tarted up” by Sir Gilbert Scott 
in the Victorian era.

Authors and Austen lovers Diane Gaston, Beth Elliott and Victoria Hinshaw
Forbury Gardens overflowed with beautiful flower beds in the September sunshine.

A pretty view in which the trees block most of the construction.

Most of the ruins of Reading Abbey are currently fenced off and inaccessible.  Repairs are underway.

The reddish tower, while picturesque, has nothing to do with the Abbey ruins!

Many of the nearby buildings were constructed of stones and rubble from the Abbey ruins.
Great Expectations, where Beth is fortunate enough to hold her critique group sessions.
After our day tramping around several estates then the Abbey ruins, we were delighted to retire with Beth Elliott to a local establishment for a little rest and relaxation.
My Austen Encounters were a great bonus to our Duke of Wellington tour, unforeseen but entirely welcome.