Born in 1929, Ghanaian photographer James Barnor documented the shift towards modern living as experienced by black people in both Africa and Britain. In the early 1950s, Barnor set up Ever Young studio in Accra’s Jamestown district where he took photographs of the local community at key stages in their lives. Although intended as personal mementos, the Ever Young photographs also recorded the changes occurring in Ghanaian society in this period.

The modern interior depicted in Barnor’s studio backdrop contrasts with the traditional clothing of the woman seated with a child beside her. Through this photograph the sitter could communicate her participation in the modern, independent aspirations of Ghana regardless of personal circumstances. The fabric of the woman’s dress, patterned with open hands and the statement ‘Everything In My Hand I Bring’, highlights this sentiment. In 1957, Ghana became the first nation in Sub-Saharan Africa to gain independence from the British Empire.

The V&A acquired five photographs by James Barnor as part of the Staying Power project. Staying Power is a five year partnership between the V&A and Black Cultural Archives. The project aims to explore black British experience from the 1950s to the 1990s through photographs acquired by the V&A and oral histories conducted by Black Cultural Archives.