Young Londoners shoot the issues that matter to them

Teen dreams — As a young person, it often feels like you don’t have a voice. However, a new exhibition seeks to change that, providing a platform for teenage photographers to tackle subjects from identity to homelessness.

As a teenager, it’s difficult to be taken seriously. Despite your best efforts, people are quick to write you off as naive and uninformed. “Ah, what do they know? They’re just kids.”

It’s suitably frustrating – especially when the decisions that impact your generation the most feel forever out of your hands (see: Brexit, US gun laws, pretty much everything in the world ever). Much of the time, it feels like no one is asking what young people think.

Which is why Common Ground – a new exhibition comprised of photographers aged between 16 – 19 years old – feels, in today’s world, particularly apt. Housed at London’s Autograph gallery until 20 November, 2018, it showcases young photographers responding to the current socio-political climate, as they see it.

© Erica Da Silva

The exhibition tackles a range of subjects, all of which are particularly pertinent to a younger demographic. For instance, photographer Chantae Henry explores how the housing crisis and rising cost of limit has resulted in the rise of young people hopping from sofa to sofa.

“The homelessness we see on the streets is only the tip of the iceberg. Couch surfing hides homelessness,” she explains. “Taking a more conceptual, less obvious approach, my work aims to dispel the myth that there is anything fun or simple about living a life of couch surfing. It’s not a sleepover if you cannot go home.”

© Chantae Henry

Elsewhere, Courtney Jelley’s work depicts her own relationship with both disability and identity. “My identity and what I would call a safe place have been ripped away from me,” she says. “For me, my home was embedded within Irish dancing. However, that was torn away from me when my disability, a medical condition called Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, started taking over my everyday life. My work represents the emotion I felt being unable to dance.”

By giving young people the platform to spotlight the issues that matter to them, Common Ground seeks to readdress the balance. For the artists – all of whom worked with Autograph and University of the Arts London on their Album programme – it’s an opportunity to be heard.

 

© Courtney Jelley

© Toby Wright

© Trey Robinson

© Hayleth Dawkins

© Celina Priebe

© Farihah Chowdhury

© Rihaz Uddin

 

© Sara Fathi

Common Ground is showing at London’s Autograph gallery from 14 – 20 November, 2018. 

Enjoyed this article? Like Huck on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.


Ad

Latest on Huck

Sport

Is the UK ready for a Kabaddi boom?

Kabaddi, Kabaddi, Kabaddi — Watched by over 280 million in India, the breathless contact sport has repeatedly tried to grip British viewers. Ahead of the Kabaddi World Cup being held in Wolverhampton this month, Kyle MacNeill speaks to the gamechangers laying the groundwork for a grassroots scene.

Written by: Kyle MacNeill

Culture

One photographer’s search for her long lost father

Decades apart — Moving to Southern California as a young child, Diana Markosian’s family was torn apart. Finding him years later, her new photobook explores grief, loss and connection.

Written by: Miss Rosen

Culture

As DOGE stutters, all that remains is cringe

Department of Gargantuan Egos — With tensions splintering the American right and contemporary rap’s biggest feud continuing to make headlines, newsletter columnist Emma Garland explains how fragile male egos stand at the core of it all.

Written by: Emma Garland

Culture

Photo essay special: Despite pre-Carnival anxiety, Mardi Gras 2025 was a joyous release for New Orleans

A city celebrates — Following a horrific New Year’s Day terror attack and forecasts for extreme weather, the Louisiana city’s marquee celebration was pre-marked with doubt. But the festival found a city in a jubilant mood, with TBow Bowden there to capture it.

Written by: Isaac Muk

Sport

From his skating past to sculpting present, Arran Gregory revels in the organic

Sensing Earth Space — Having risen to prominence as an affiliate of Wayward Gallery and Slam City Skates, the shredder turned artist creates unique, temporal pieces out of earthly materials. Dorrell Merritt caught up with him to find out more about his creative process.

Written by: Dorrell Merritt

Music

In Bristol, pub singers are keeping an age-old tradition alive

Ballads, backing tracks, beers — Bar closures, karaoke and jukeboxes have eroded a form of live music that was once an evening staple, but on the fringes of the southwest’s biggest city, a committed circuit remains.

Written by: Fred Dodgson

Signup to our newsletter

Sign up to stay informed from the cutting edge of sport, music and counterculture, with personal takes on the state of media and pop culture in your inbox every month from Emma Garland, former Digital Editor of Huck, exclusive interviews, recommendations and more.

Please wait...