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Untitled [West Indian woman poses in her sitting room in Brixton]

Photograph
1972 (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.

Photographs like this were taken for the sitter to send to relatives in the Caribbean to show that they had settled well in Britain. The compositions of these images recall studio portraiture. These scenes of domestic pride allowed families to showcase the variety of material goods they owned and the modern homes they lived in.

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
TitleUntitled [West Indian woman poses in her sitting room in Brixton] (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
C-type print
Brief description
Photograph by Neil Kenlock, 'Untitled [West Indian woman poses in her sitting room in Brixton]', C-type print, London, 1972, printed 2011
Physical description
A colour photograph of a woman posing in a room in front of a bar area. She wears a long lilac dress with a woven pattern and stands resting one hand on the bar and the other on her hip. The room is decorated with patterned wallpaper and carpet.
Dimensions
  • Image size height: 34.7cm
  • Image size width: 34.5cm
  • Paper size height: 50.1cm
  • Paper size width: 40.8cm
Style
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.

Photographs like this were taken for the sitter to send to relatives in the Caribbean to show that they had settled well in Britain. The compositions of these images recall studio portraiture. These scenes of domestic pride allowed families to showcase the variety of material goods they owned and the modern homes they lived in.

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
Collection
Accession number
E.213-2012

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Record createdApril 5, 2012
Record URL
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