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Untitled [Young Jamaican lady standing in her mother's front room in Brixton Hill]
Photograph
1973 (photographed), 2011 (printed)
1973 (photographed), 2011 (printed)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Photographer Neil Kenlock (born 1950) moved to London from Jamaica in 1963 and became determined to document black pride in the face of racial prejudice. Building on his background in protest photography, Kenlock brought the same sense of confidence to the colour photographs he took of British Caribbean people at home in the 1970s.
This photograph depicts Kenlock’s future wife Judith on her 21st birthday, as she poses proudly next to her birthday cards and the traditional present of a key. Photographs like this were taken to send to relatives still living in Jamaica, and so it was important to showcase the family’s array of home furnishings and other modern conveniences.
The V&A acquired ten photographs by Kenlock alongside work by his contemporaries Charlie Phillips and Armet Francis 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.
This photograph depicts Kenlock’s future wife Judith on her 21st birthday, as she poses proudly next to her birthday cards and the traditional present of a key. Photographs like this were taken to send to relatives still living in Jamaica, and so it was important to showcase the family’s array of home furnishings and other modern conveniences.
The V&A acquired ten photographs by Kenlock alongside work by his contemporaries Charlie Phillips and Armet Francis 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.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Untitled [Young Jamaican lady standing in her mother's front room in Brixton Hill] (assigned by artist) |
| Materials and techniques | C-type print |
| Brief description | Photograph by Neil Kenlock, 'Untitled [Young Jamaican lady standing in her mother's front room in Brixton Hill]', C-type print, London, 1973, printed 2011 |
| Physical description | A colour photograph of a young black woman wearing a long chequered skirt and a brown turtle neck sweater standing in a living room in front of closed, mustard coloured curtains. She rests her hand on a display cabinet filled with china and glassware. There are pot plants either side of her and a telephone on the floor. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Style | |
| Gallery label | Text label for the exhibition, 'Staying Power: Photographs of Black British Experience, 1950s-1990s
16 February – 24 May 2015
Neil Kenlock (born 1950)
Untitled [Young Jamaican Lady Standing in Her Mother’s
Front Room in Brixton Hill]
Untitled [A Well Fully Clad Man Photographed Standing by
His Television in Stockwell, South London]
Untitled [Young Woman Seated on the Floor at Home in
Front of Her Television Set]
Untitled [A Young Girl Speaking on Her Parents’ Telephone in
South London]
1972 – 73
Jamaican-born Kenlock made this series of photographs
of Caribbean people at home in London in the 1970s.
The sitters often sent these photographs to their
relatives to show how well they had settled in Britain.
The photographs resemble studio portraits, but instead
of backdrops and props, the individuals pose in their own
homes with their possessions, showing a sense of pride
in their surroundings and belongings.
C-type prints (printed 2011)
Museum nos. E.212, 214, 215, 306-2012(16/02/2015-24/05/2015) |
| Credit line | Supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. |
| Object history | The V&A acquired this photograph 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. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | Photographer Neil Kenlock (born 1950) moved to London from Jamaica in 1963 and became determined to document black pride in the face of racial prejudice. Building on his background in protest photography, Kenlock brought the same sense of confidence to the colour photographs he took of British Caribbean people at home in the 1970s. This photograph depicts Kenlock’s future wife Judith on her 21st birthday, as she poses proudly next to her birthday cards and the traditional present of a key. Photographs like this were taken to send to relatives still living in Jamaica, and so it was important to showcase the family’s array of home furnishings and other modern conveniences. The V&A acquired ten photographs by Kenlock alongside work by his contemporaries Charlie Phillips and Armet Francis 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. |
| Associated objects |
|
| Bibliographic reference | Making & unmaking. Olowu, Duro. London : Ridinghouse : Camden Arts Centre, 2016.
Published on the occasion of the exhibition held at the Camden Arts Centre, London, 19 June - 18 September 2016.
Includes interview of Duro Olowu by Glenn Ligon. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | E.212-2012 |
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| Record created | April 5, 2012 |
| Record URL |
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