Participating Artists Press Agency
“Migrationpapa”
Tuesday 7th of July 2020 – page 4
On a Monday morning in November 2010, six photographers in five cities around the world take their cameras to urban neighbourhoods where newcomers arrive. The photos flow into the PAPA website like a wave moving around the world. First from Bangladesh, five hours later from Rotterdam and Lagos – cities in the same time zone. Detroit and São Paulo complete the group another seven hours later. From the first week the photos and captions were projected on the windows of the cultural centre at the entrance to the neighbourhood in Rotterdam. The same will happen in other cities. In this way the inhabitants of the various newcomers neighbourhoods not only get a fresh perspective on their own lives but they also get to see how newcomers in other cities live. Migrationpapa is a PAPA project for Kosmopolis Rotterdam with the generous support of Hivos
Saturday 6th of November 2010
Dhaka -
As children we used to talk about Italian Saloons (‘It’ is a brick in Bangla, so these were saloons where you sat on roadside bricks). We also had Mongolian Saloons…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Detroit -
It’s 10 a.m. and Michigan Ave. is almost empty. Michigan Ave. is one of the main streets in Detroit. It was built to accommodate several lanes of traffic going…
Marcin Szczepanski –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
Kadar moton ghumai literally translates to ‘sleeping like sand’. It is generally used for small children who drape themselves around their mother, sleeping as if the world didn’t exist. These…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Rotterdam -
At the hairdresser in Dordtselaan a poster is displayed. It says: ‘ I will act when I witness a violent situation in the street.'The poster was published by the…
Nies Medema –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
Much of the land on either side of the Beri Bandh embankment used to be a swamp, and most homes are built on stilts. The refuse from nearby tanneries and…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
Many of the inhabitants of Sadek City Model Town live in narrowly packed lines of rooms made of bamboo. They can get water from nearby tubewells and have electricity for…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Detroit -
Empty houses have been turned into art installations. Heidelberg Project is the most well known example of urban art in Detroit inspired by socio-economic issues prevalent in the city. A…
Marcin Szczepanski –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
This is the man around whom I will be building my story. He lives on the upper floor of the wooden huts in Sadek City Model Town.…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
You need very little to set up a shop. Here a balance and a wicker baskets and some plastic bags, make up the entire furniture. Even what is sold (legs…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
Photo studios are generally adorned with pin up of popular movie stars. Often clients request to be photographed as their favourite star. The studio generally has a full complement of…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
The precision required in placing the fragile clay pots is difficult to gauge. Once each circle of pots is in position, the men tap the pots to hear for any…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
The owners of the rickshaw garage are often themselves former rickshaw pullers. These owners are migrants too. Rickshaws often get stolen. They are also taken away by local protection rackets…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
The concept of privacy is very different in a home where the whole family lives in one room.…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
A rickshaw walla with his baby girl. While it is difficult to make ends meet with what one earns pulling a rickshaw. Once children are born, it becomes more difficult…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
A woman haggles over the price of lipstick and other cosmetics. She is prepared to pay 15 Taka (around 15 euro cents) for the lot, but the seller wants 25…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
Kali is considered the goddess of time and change. Although sometimes presented as dark and violent, her earliest incarnation as a figure of annihilation still has some influence. Shahidul Alam/Drik/Majority…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
The bed in this family home almost fills up the entire space of the 8 foot by 8 foot room. Things are stuck up on the walls to save space…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
A cow decides to take a leisurely walk along the road. Other traffic simply lets it be, and life goes on as normal.…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Detroit -
A manifesto sign is on display at the entrance to the garden and orchard belonging to the Trumbull Plex, anarchist/artist community that has been established in two houses on Trumbull…
Marcin Szczepanski –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
The corner shop sells pretty much anything you might need on a daily basis. It is also a tea shop. However, to do business you need more, so all the…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
Looking into the sun from the rickshaw garage. Rickshaws get regularly ‘stolen’ and the garage is notified. Once they pay the protection money, they are told where they can pick…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Dhaka -
Most male migrants who come into from villages have skills like farming and fishing, which are not useful in the city. They initially work as rickshaw drivers or labourers. Rickshaw…
Shahidul Alam –
Migrationpapa
Rotterdam -
In many shop windows in Dordtselaan, like this Islamic Surinam butcher, a poster on violence and safety is displayed. It suggests that we all should act when witnessing violence.According…
Nies Medema –
Migrationpapa
Detroit -
An abandoned building on Chene St. in Detroit has been turned into an urban canvas by an artist. The painting presents cartoon characters engaged in violence and drugs. It was…
Marcin Szczepanski –
Migrationpapa