We are excited to announce our 2024 commission winners, Bella Denise, Karolina Raczynski and Jade Sweeting.
Each photographer has been awarded £3000 towards the completion of a project on the theme of Working Lives, with an exhibition at Four Corners in April 2025.
OVERVIEW
These commissions form an exciting part of our 2024/2025 programme Working Lives, which is exploring the role of photography in documenting working lives in Britain from the 1930s to the present.
Applicants were invited to draw inspiration from the work of the Half Moon Photography Workshop/Camerawork, held within Four Corners’ Archive. Founded in 1975 in East London, this radical collective pioneered political and socially conscious approaches to documentary photography.
The selection panel consisted of photographers Daniel Meadows, Judy Harrison and Seema Khalique. Their combined experience in long-term documentary projects, socially engaged and community practice was invaluable in the decision process.
COMMISSION WINNERS
Bella Denise Bella’s project Shooting an Elephant will use her slow-looking & sensorial practice to explore the decline and marginalisation of the small business industry in Elephant & Castle, South East London, for working communities that rely on these industries for communal care and cultural ownership.
Jade Sweeting
Jade’s project will document the daily working lives of Lydia Noble, who lives and works as a Drystone Waller in West Yorkshire. Offering an alternative approach to portraiture that focuses specifically on the hands, the tools, and the landscape from winter to spring, this series of work will highlight and celebrate intergenerational knowledge, traditional practices, movement, sounds, as well as the strength and skills required for this laborious work in varying weather conditions and seasons.
instagram.com/jadesweeting
Karolina Raczynski
Karolina will undertake a community film project with the volunteers at Bethnal Green Nature Reserve to explore the benefits of volunteering within the community. This will include the broader theme of what work means and focus on the working life of what lives and grows in the Reserve.
Having recently learnt the technique of Phytography from artist and filmmaker Karel Doing, Karolina will experiment with this method using the chemistry of plants to create images on film. In combination with digital footage recorded during volunteering sessions at the Reserve, she will collect audio material and invite participants to make a 16mm film together.
cargocollective.com/karolinaraczynski
Alongside their £3000 grant, our commission winners will receive 1-2-1 support throughout the project, access to Four Corners’ darkroom, photography studio and filmmaking facilities, the opportunity to take part in a work in progress event and receive feedback from established photographers, and a final group exhibition.
FUNDING PARTNERS
This commission opportunity is made possible through the support of The Foyle Foundation, The Ampersand Foundation and the Garfield Weston Foundation.