Tori Ferenc
Sěmьja (2025)
Sěmьja (pronounced sim-ya) a proto-Slavic word referring to family and close communities, is a reflection on identity, memory, and cultural continuity. Drawing on her Polish heritage, Tori Ferenc captures Eastern European clubs and community centres across Bradford. She photographs second and third-generation migrants, focusing on those who have grown up here, but who remain deeply connected to their ancestral homeland. Brought together by their experience of living between two worlds, these people are united by their history, culture and identity.
Visiting the Ukrainian Club, Eesti Kodu (Estonian Club), Latvian Club, and Polish Parish Club, Ferenc reimagines these centres as homes in their own right. These spaces allow groups to come together, find belonging and rejoice in their shared heritage. Through intimate intergenerational portraits, Sěmьja is a testament to the ways in which cultural identity is preserved, reshaped, and carried forward within Bradford’s Eastern European communities.