YOU CAN SEE ME BUT I DONT EXIST
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“You can see me, but I don’t exist” combines photography by Alan Gignoux and creative writing by people seeking refuge living in Birmingham, London, and Manchester. The project was supported by an Arts Council England National Lottery Grant.
For this body of work, Gignoux used a camera obscura to create portraits of refugees in the UK. He chose a long exposure to blur the faces and bodies of the refugees, while leaving the background in focus. This intentional blurring was intended as a metaphor for the way in which the asylum process undermines people’s identity and makes them feel invisible.
Shown here is a portrait of Mirium Turyasingura who has been waiting for a response to her asylum application for over twenty years. Many asylum seekers in her position experience destitution, eviction, and even temporary incarceration in a detention centre. Mirium lives in Birmingham and is one of the women who turn to the Baobab Women’s Project for advice, support, and companionship.
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