‘From Here We Saw What Happened’

A collaboration between our student cultural ambassadors and the art department at Ricards Lodge High School by Michelle McKenzie and Sebastian Rainsford.

“What we do is more important than what we say or what we say we believe.” (bell hooks)

This quote taken from bell hooks rings true for the students involved in this project: that actions speak louder than words. Our mural ‘From Here We Saw What Happened’ is a student response to the discussion around race equality and representation in our school community.

It all started in the Autumn of 2020, when the Black Lives Matter movement and international protests at the killing of George Floyd in police custody were still very clear in the memory. Our student ambassadors knew they wanted to address the issue and take positive action. They were given opportunities to discuss ideas with staff; one of which was looking at the school displays. Could our displays be more reflective of the diverse community we have in our school? How could our community be accurately and positively represented? Could we use art to spread an important and powerful message?

After an initial meeting where students spoke with eloquence and passion about their own cultural heritage we decided between us to create a mural in the grounds of the school. When they returned they came loaded with ideas and imagery that we used as the basis of our first drawings. At this stage our students worked independently on sketches that included different aspects of black history. They had a clear vision and wanted the overall design to be celebratory, colourful and exciting. They came back time and time again with new ideas until we all felt that we had something strong that we could build upon and take to the school leadership team. We were thrilled to get the thumbs up from the headteacher but didn’t realise at the time that this was only the start. We sought permission from a variety of stakeholders and made sure that all the materials we planned to use would pass muster. After many emails back and forth we finally got the go ahead to start the work at the beginning of the summer term 2022. This also happened to be the summer of GCSE exams for our cultural ambassadors. Despite this we set about the task and the students continued to come with huge energy and enthusiasm and a willingness to work really hard to bring their ideas to life.

‘From Here We Saw What Happened’ features close up sections of different imagery loaded with meaning. The sections, in places, appear abstracted, encouraging the viewer to stand back and look further for clues and make their own connections.

The mural celebrates a range of different aspects of Black history; from a lesser known 16th century bronze head cast of a female Benin warrior to more familiar and loved historical and contemporary figures. It celebrates the perfectly formed geometric patterns introduced by the African Moors to Europe pre 1400; Kente and Ankara fabric prints with strong and personal connections to heritage; the Windrush generation who arrived to a new life in Britain; the Notting Hill Carnival which embraces and preserves Caribbean culture laid down by the first generation; the 20th century artists who tirelessly challenged under-representation in the art world and the Black history tube map which presents the rich and varied contribution Black people have made to London and the UK from Pre-Tudor times to the present day. All of which is bookended by a pair of profiles of everyday black women. Many asked the question, “Who are the women in the portrait profiles?” They symbolise the women who inspire and lead us every day; sisters, mothers, aunties, friends and members of our community.