Touring Photography Exhibition
Monday, November 17
12-25 November 2008
Close to home is an exhibition of lens-based work by a group of eight artists from across South East Europe, held in partnership with the Georgian National Museum. The exhibition explores the themes of migration and displacement as part of the wider agenda being addressed by the British Council project Living Together. One of the underlying aims of the exhibition is to begin an investigation into the impact of certain migrant communities on a contemporary society that remains largely unaware of their existence, and how these communities adapt to new landscapes and evolve within new social structures. The exhibition previewed in London in March and is currently touring around South East Europe.
The exhibition is supported by an online photography competition as well as a range of wrap-around activities throughout its touring life. In addition Artists Camp, a workshop for Armenian, Azerbaijani and Georgian artists as well as 8 Georgian teachers, was held in October in partnership with InIVA - Institute of Visual Arts.
The exhibition’s featured artists are David Creedon, Piruza Khalapyan, Yuval Yairi, Dana Popa, George Georgiou, Gulsun Karamustafa, Ivor Prickett and Sejla Kameric.
Piruza Khalapyan - Murtada’s Story
Marriage between Armenians and non-Armenians is very rare, and the lives of those who make this commitment are set apart from those of their neighbours. In 2005, there were 864 registered multicultural marriages in Armenia. While many of the couples moved abroad in search of a better life, ‘Murtada's story’ portrays one couple who decided to stay: Murtada, from Umderman in Sudan, and Nara, a native Armenian.
Murtada left Sudan in 1993, primarily to escape the civil war. He travelled to Jordan and on to Syria. Having been denied refugee status in Syria, the most accessible Embassy in Damascus was the Armenian Embassy; and so it is to some extent by chance that Murtada found himself in Armenia. He had great trouble with the language initially, but over time he made friends, got a job, met Nara and started a family. They have a five-year-old son named Bashir.
At first sight, theirs may appear to be a happy family; but they face daily challenges, including prejudice in their everyday lives. Murtada cannot find a steady job with decent pay. Despite leaving Sudan with a good education, he is unable to find consistent employment in Yerevan. Only Nara has regular work, and must devote huge amounts of energy to keeping her family on its feet.