Photo credit: Ross Bradley
During Kendal's first annual Unity Festival, coinciding with refugee week in the UK, I designed and set up a pop-up portraiture activity for Abbot Hall Art Gallery. 'Faces of Kendal' was inspired by Abbot Hall's collection portraits by 18th century artist George Romney.
Over 80 people of all ages posed for a photograph at the outdoor festival on 23 June 2018, including the town's newly elected Mayor Guy Tirvengadum, a community police woman, and Holly the sheepdog. 'Faces of Kendal' updated and enlivened Abbot Hall Art by capturing snapshots of Kendal today - from recent immigrants and young people studying locally, to people born and raised in Kendal.
Portraits were displayed in the front entrance of Abbot Hall Art Gallery with a digital screen placed behind an antique frame. All the portraits are available to view on Abbot Hall Art Gallery's facebook page.