30 The New Londoners | Arts
Arts | The New Londoners 31
PHOTOGRAPH: PAul H. RObinSOn
Theatre
What happens when ordinary Britons meet people who are running for their lives? Christine Bacon has turned the answer into a play, Asylum Dialogues Before John, a 66-year-old Birmingham accountant, met Angela, a 40-year-old Jamaican woman who cleaned his office, he admits he fell for the spin about asylum seekers perpetuated by the tabloid press and the government. Ò I honestly used to say Ð send them all back home. They shouldnÕ t be here. Taking all our money.Ó he was even considering voting for the BNP. Ò Then,Ó he says, Ò this woman Angela turned up to clean my office and turned the world upside down.Ó John soon discovered that Angela had been brutally attacked in Jamaica and, after trying to hide from the political gang members targeting her, had come to the uK to save her life. he started to understand first-hand how brutal the uKÕ s immigration policies can be. John helped Angela get out of immigration detention where she was held for five months, and made sure she wasnÕ t deported, despite five often violent removal attempts. Now he has become a vocal advocate for the rights of asylum seekers. John and AngelaÕ s story is one of three included in iceandfireÕ s play Asylum Dialogues. The script is made up entirely of interview material and tells the inspiring stories of ordinary British people who have come face to face with asylum seekers and become personally involved in their battle to be accepted by the home Office. We conceived the idea for this play after touring Asylum Monologues, a play which tells the disturbing news about the asylum system in Britain. We wanted to document and celebrate some the many acts of solidarity we were constantly hearing about. Incidents which are reported in local papers then forgotten. We wanted to demonstrate the distinction between the relentless negative spin about people seeking sanctuary in the uK and the actions of countless British people when they meet people who have run for their lives and need help. Asylum Dialogues was launched last year and has been on a rolling tour ever since. Our outreach network, Actors for human Rights, can go anywhere at any time to give rehearsed readings of the play. This year, we are joining forces with pioneering national movement City of Sanctuary to bring the play to cities such as London which are trying to build a culture of hospitality for people seeking sanctuary. Why not help us do that and come along? If you canÕ t make it, invite us to come to you. Christine Bacon is co-artistic director of iceandfire theatre www.iceandfire.co.uk Asylum Dialogues, New Players Theatre, WC2, 21 June, 7.30pm, £6, unwaged free: www.ticketweb.co.uk
England People Very Nice Described as a Ò riotous journey through four waves of immigration from the 17th century to todayÓ , Richard beanÕ s controversial play examines recurring anxiety over waves of migrants Ð whether they be french Huguenots, irish, Jews or bangladeshis. Olivier Theatre, National Theatre, South Bank, SE1, many seats £10, until 9 August, www.nationaltheatre.org.uk
Exhibitions
MongoliaÕ s Rich Cradle: Master Craftswomen of the Kazakh Diaspora As well as gorgeously coloured textiles made by Kazakh women living in the remote Altai Mountains, this exhibition features photographs, films and musical events, with a finished yurt Ð where the women gather to make work Ð taking centre stage. Brunei Gallery, SOAS, Russell Square, WC1, free, 9 July-19 Sept, 10.30am-5pm Tue-Sat, www.soas.ac.uk/gallery Bitter Fruit images of Afghanistan down the decades, including eve ArnoldÕ s early investigative work on the customs of the veil, Thomas DworzakÕ s found portraits of Taliban fighters, beautified through make-up, and Steve McCurryÕ s popular Afghan Girl. Magnum Print Room, 63 Gee Street, EC1, free, until 31 July, 11am-4.30pm Wed-Fri, www.magnumphotos.com
of the waves of immigration that shaped Spitalfields seen through the eyes of todayÕ s children from six local schools. 19 Princelet Street, London E1, free, check www.19princeletstreet. org.uk for opening times Living Ancestors Almost 100 people on the Caribbean island of Dominica are centenarians, many more are in their nineties and most are women. Gabrielle le RouxÕ s portraits celebrate their remarkable lives and staying power. Museum of London Docklands, West India Quay, E14, £5 for a year’s ticket, until 31 July, 10am6pm, www.museumoflondon.org. uk/docklands Still Human Still Here Abbie Trayler-Smith reveals the underground world of destitute asylum seekers, with photographs of men and women from the Democratic Republic of Congo, iran, iraq, Somalia, Zimbabwe and other countries with serious human rights violations. Gallery in the Crypt at St Martinin-the-Fields, Trafalgar Square, WC2, free 19 June-31 July, 10am-6pm Mon-Sat, 12 noon-6pm Sun, www.stillhuman.org.uk Living in Exile: Iraqi Refugees in Syria in the summer of 2008, british photographer Tom Saunderson worked with a group of young refugee iraqis in Damascus, teaching them photography. Their work gives a glimpse into the hopes and fears of their uprooted lives. Foyer at St Martin-in-the-Fields, Trafalgar Square, WC2, free, to 21 June, 8am-8pm Mon-Sat, 12 noon-6pm www2.stmartin-in-the-fields.org
Music World Music Day featuring African drumming lessons and performances by professional musicians from Africa, Turkey, eastern europe, brazil and elsewhere, on two stages in a garden setting. bring your own instrument and play. Forest Farm Peace Garden, Hazelbrouck Gardens, off New North Road, Hainault, free, 21 June, 11am-5pm, www.forestfarmpeacegarden.org
Talks Suitcases and Sanctuary In Europe’s first migration museum, a Hugenot silk merchantÕ s home with a hidden victorian synagogue, an exhibition of the history
War, Refugees and Testimony Marking the 70th anniversary of the Wiener Library’s move to london, a seminar examining the arrival of refugees as a result of war, their contribution to britain and the historical
importance of the stories and testimony they leave behind, followed by the launch of Refugee voices, an audio-visual testimony project featuring interviews with 150 Holocaust survivors and refugees. There will be an opportunity to see the collection and hear from one of the contributing survivors The Wiener Library Institute of Contemporary History, 4 Devonshire Street, London W1, 18 June, from 2.30pm, booking essential, www.wienerlibrary.co.uk
DepARTures Architect eva Jiricna, poet Alev Adil and writer Gillian Slovo discuss how being a refugee has influenced their work in a discussion chaired by journalist and broadcaster yasmin Alibhaibrown. Hochhauser Auditorium, Sackler Centre, Victoria & Albert Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7, free, 17 June, 7pm-8.30pm, www.vam.ac.uk
Fashion show African fashion show Traditional and contemporary African wear for women and men, made by the students of eleonore MensahÕ s sewing workshop, presented by notre Dame Refugee Centre and Resonance fM. Leicester Square Basement Theatre, 5 Leicester Place, London WC2, free, 18 June, 2pm-5pm, 0207 440 2668 or drop-in@notredamerc.org.uk
World crafts workshop A workshop to learn the craft of islamic glass painting is one of the v&AÕ s free events – including concerts, films, talks and tours Ð to celebrate Refugee Week. Arts Studio, Sackler Centre, Victoria & Albert Museum, Cromwell Road, SW7, free, 18 June, 10.30am-4.30pm, www.vam.ac.uk
Writing competition The Alfred fagon Award, set up to commemorate the life of the late Jamaican playwright and actor, is seeking submissions from playwrights of African or Caribbean descent who are resident in the uK. The winner gets £5,000 and a staged reading of their work at the Cottesloe Theatre at the national Theatre. Deadline 1 August, www.alfredfagonaward.co.uk More Refugee Week events nationwide: www.refugeeweek.org.uk
Music is a source of harmony and strength Classical musician Mansour Mortezaee explains to Marjan Esmaili how his Iranian background influences his work Mansour Mortezaee is a musician and teacher who has been living and working in the uK for 31 years, who believes that music is a Ò source of harmony which can build the bridge for people to reach one another.Ó
Love changes everything Love in the Sky, a show opening later this month at the ICA, asks us all to reflect on the true meaning of love. One of the artists involved is Sara Shamsavari, a photographer, musician and arts activist of Iranian origin who now lives and works in London. Ò We are living in an uncertain time of change, social, political and economic,Ó she tells The New Londoners. Ò But throughout these changes, love endures as a constant force Ð itself a driver of change.Ó her collaborators on the musical and visual pieces are the acclaimed singer-songwriter and vocalist for The Streets, Kevin Mark Trail, and the collage artist Colin Barnes. Sara believes: Ò If you can change the way someone feels, you can change the world,Ó and tries to depict her subjects in a true and positive light, especially those who have been marginalised by society, thus encouraging a transformation in the way people view society and themselves. Born in Iran, in the midst of the Islamic Revolution, to an Iranian BahaÕ i mother and AzerbaijaniKurdish father, Sara survived childhood cancer and moving from her country before finally settling with her family in the uK at the age of two. her miraculous gift of life, against all odds, is what motivates her. Ò I hope to inspire people towards the message of love, equality and acceptance in this troubled world we live in,Ó she says. Love In The Sky opens at the ICA on 30 June: www.ica.org.uk
Tell us about your music
I am qualified as a conductor and also teach and write music. I am familiar with the Iranian music but my training is in Western classical music, which I listened to from the age of 10. Do you see the impact of different types of music enriching your work?
I am a citizen of the world. My music is Western but I bring touch of Iranian music into it. This kind of fusion is exciting, for example in the work of musicians such as Shahrdad Rohani and Kambiz Roshanravan. Do you think music is a means of understanding about other cultures?
Definitely yes. Music is a universal language. It is a source of harmony which can bring people together and is close to everyoneÕ s heart. I have worked with every nationality you could think of. Music has always been a source of strength. I believe that classical music is more of a universal language than popular music. Popular music is all angled to the local needs, while in classical music you have to go beyond that boundary of human self. What do you think are the benefits of a multicultural society in the uK?
If we develop an enabling environment, everyone would benefit, migrants as well as the host country. Some musicians
PHOTOGRAPH: TOM KinG
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Mansour Mortezaee
begin by imitating their host country, but after a while everyone adds his own unique interest and character to the music and makes it flourish. If you look at history, the cultures became enriched by attraction to one another, not by living in isolation. How do you think the experience of exile has influenced your work?
To separate yourself from your land is a very painful experience. I still find it very difficult to think that I am not part of Iran. Although I am making the uK my home and there have been great opportunities here for me, I always feel very strongly about my country. My intention was definitely to return home but there was the Iranian revolution and things changed beyond my expectation. As a musician, how do you think you can contribute to society and what are your future plans?
to music education. Most of my work has been used to teach at universities. I have developed methods in rhythmic and pitch development. Since I was from a different culture, I could see the problems within Western music better than someone from inside the culture. And that was a point of strength for me. I hope to publish this work one day. I am planning to publish two albums one for piano and one for violin. I am also planning to publish some works especially for Iranian audiences.
You can cage the flower, but you cannot take away the fragrance - Iranian proverb
My hope has always been to contribute
New ideas contradict old labels: challenging British views of the Balkans Nela Milic tells Avtandil Lortkipanidze and Anne Stoltenberg about her recent exhibition London-based Nela Milic is a producer who works across theatre and visual arts. She is a PhD student at Goldsmiths university where she has staged the exhibition Balkanising Taxonomy. What inspired you to stage this show?
PHOTOGRAPH: SARA SHAMSAvARi
Who says they should go home?
I was invited by Goldsmiths university to curate an exhibition of Balkan textiles donated by Jane Page. I wanted to question what we know about the Balkans and suggest the information that I have put in front of you might not provide you with all the answers but that that can be OK. I realised that the owner of the collection had a different perception from someone like me, who is from the region, about what is Balkan. The collection gave me a vehicle to explore how the region is viewed in the West and how the perception differs from the reality.
So what did you do from there?
Inspired by the seminal work of post-modern philosophy Ways of Seeing by John Berger, I wanted to show that if we donÕ t look at things properly, we wonÕ t see them at all. Also I wanted to deconstruct the ways we categorise and exhibit things. Through my academic reading, I had come across the two terms Ò balkanisingÓ and Ò taxonomisingÓ . Ò BalkanisingÓ means fragmenting, and I was very upset that this word is used at all because you are attaching this characteristic to a whole region. In the media in particular, it is used to mean something degenerated. I was also investigating Ò taxonomisingÓ something Ð labelling and shelving it in order to understand it. This done a lot in Britain. I wanted to rebel and say that when you label something you are failing to understand it. There are a lot of things about the
Balkans that are related to the war and violence. This is relevant and important especially for the people of the Balkans to reckon with, but there are beautiful and wonderful things about the Balkans, too. So I feel that I need to start re-balancing the books, to bring good things from the Balkans rather than just erase the negatives. What is the significance of being a Balkan artist curating an exhibition of Balkan artefacts?
It is a pleasure and a problem. You are questioning yourself: are you ever going to be asked to do anything else? I am seen either as a refugee artist, or a Balkan artist. This is part of taxonomising of course. You hear someoneÕ s accent and then you need to categorise them rather than just letting them be. It is not so important on some occasions, but for this particular exhibition, it was important that I had the knowledge of the area. Nela is reading her poetry in Norwich for Refugee Week on 21 June: www.writerscentrenorwich.org.uk