The speakers for our final seminar on this project are Tarla Patel and Vanley Burke. The event is funded by Heritage Lottery Fund and is chaired by Black Country Visual Arts director Jagdish Patel.
Tarla Patel
Tarla is a visual artist based in Coventry, recently completing an MA in Contemporary Arts at Coventry University in 2019. Tarla’s work explores identity, memory and space through migration and storytelling. Patel is the legacy holder of her father’s photography by the Masterji Archive, which was part of the successful Coventry City of Culture launch. The photographs document migrants especially from the South Asian community in post war Coventry from the 1950s to year 2000. Published Masterji (2017).
Vanley Burke
Vanley was born in Jamaica and arrived in Birmingham in 1965 aged 15. Here he began photographing the lives and experiences of the African Caribbean community. He is often described as the ‘Godfather of Black British Photography’, whereby his iconic images have captured the evolving cultural landscape, social change and stimulated debate in the United Kingdom over the past four decades. He draws strength from remaining a humble man of the community, whose personable character allows him to capture the intimate and private nature of people’s everyday lives.