By Sabine Pierce Jones, Y12
Eva Ciss and Stella Cunliffe, two year 13 students held an exhibition in our very own Centre des Arts from the 15th to the 30th of April. The two students collaborated on the “I AM” project, in which they advocated for the Black Lives Matter movement through photography. Their aim: to raise awareness and contribute to the anti-racism movement.
On May 25, George Floyd, an unarmed black man was killed by a police officer, Derek Chauvin. This highlighted racism and police brutality that prevailed in not only America, but everywhere. Outraged, thousands took to the streets to protest, others advocated on social media for Black Lives Matter.
Due to Covid, Eva and Stella became disheartened by their inability to protest. As many would agree, quarantine limited how we could show our support for this anti-racism movement. The two put their heads together to find a viable Covid friendly solution. The powerlessness they felt only increased their motivation. In doing so they started the “I Am” project in June 2020.
“My favourite part about doing this project has to be having collaborated with Eva and her family. After deciding to do this project about such an imperative issue, I wanted to capture the closeness I saw between Eva and her family that strengthens, and unites them. As Eva and I are so close in real life, it was also a pleasure to express our different creative perspectives in order to be a part of a movement we both feel so strongly about.”
– Stella Cunliffe
Their aim was not necessarily to point out racism in our own country, Switzerland, but to remind people that this is a global issue. To them, it is an issue like any other that can only be solved if we work together and contribute in all means possible.
By using photography they enhanced the degradation black people felt everyday. Their plan was to write in white on dark skin, to use contrast as emphasis. More importantly, the idea of words written on bodies forms a powerful message: we are not determined by prejudice based on the way we look, especially, in this case, our skin. Instead they spread a new meaning: they wanted to visually represent the issues of past and present racism by advocating for justice, freedom, and equality.
