Dazed and Photo London present: Representation Through the Lens

Thursday 10th April 2019, 7pm | The Screening Room | Somerset House | Buy Tickets

Dazed and Photo London present Representation Through the Lens, a panel between photographers Vicky Grout, Emily Rose England, and Mahtab Hussain, moderated by Dazed art writer Lexi Manatakis. The discussion will analyse the importance of authentic representation in contemporary photography, particularly through the lens of counter culture. The photographers will discuss their craft, how they remain true to their subjects, and the overall importance of photography as a tool for change

Vicky Grout is one of the most well-known and loved photographers in the UK right now. She has documented the grime scene like no-one else over the past few years, immortalising moments within the subculture that have become part of it’s rich history that spans over a decade. Much of this body of work was curated into her first stand alone exhibition, “AAA”, which received glowing reviews from both the public and music industry alike. With music photography as her foundation, Vicky has gone on to diversify her output. She is now a highly in demand fashion photographer, specialising in streetwear photography. Vicky is frequently shooting look books and editorials for brands large and small, from Nike and Adidas through to start-up brands her friends have launched.

More recently, she has turned her focus to issue based work. Vicky’s output is now often political in message and progressive in tone. With numerous projects running concurrently tackling a wide range of issues from sexism to racism and much in-between, it is clear her work now aims to empower and educate young people, and help shape a more equal and harmonious world.

Emily Rose England is a London-based photographer, whose work captures the life and vibrancy of East London’s LGBTQ+ community today. Often working with analogue photography, her images capture a community whose spaces are increasingly under threat from hostility, privatisation and gentrification.

British artist, Mahtab Hussain (b. 1981), explores the important relationship between identity, heritage and displacement. His themes develop through long-term research articulating a visual language that challenges the prevailing concepts of multiculturalism.

He received his BA in History of Art at Goldsmith College specialising in Fine Art Photography; his MA in Museum and Gallery Management, City University, London; awarded an Arts Humanities Research Council (AHRC), he completed a MA in Photography at Nottingham Trent University.

Hussain has been recipient of numerous awards and commissions including, Ikon Gallery, New Art Exchange, Arts Council England, Arts Humanities Research Council; he has also been winner of the Curators Choice Award, Culture Cloud at New Art Exchange and of Format 13 Portfolio Review Award for most significant review. Hussain was selected as the 2015 Light Work + Autograph ABP Artist-in-Residence, and chosen from 500 international artists to be ‘discovery artist’ under the prestigious Discoveries Award in 2016 at Houston FotoFest.

Hussain has published four artist books his You Get Me? series is published by MACK books with the support of Arts Council England winning the Light Work Photobook Award for 2017. Going Back to Where I Came From is published by Ikon Gallery, supported by Arts Council England and The British Council. His previous publications, The Quiet Town of Tipton was published by Dewi Lewis and commissioned by Multistory and The Commonality of Stranger published by New Art Exchange.

Hussain’s has been featured on BBC Radio 4, BBC 4 BBC World News and published in articles from The Guardian, The Economist, The Financial Times, The Independent, Vanity Fair, New York Times, Metro, Buzzfeed, Dazed and Confused, Elephant Magazine and Aperture. Recently Hussain was featured on the prestigious BBC 4 documentary ‘What Do Artists Do All Day?’.

Lexi Manatakis is an art writer and content producer pursuing ties between creativity and social advocacy, which she heralds as the running of her work across digital media, branded content, and social media. She is currently art writer and digital assistant at Dazed where she has been for nearly two years. Lexi started her career as a regular contributor for brands like i-D, VICE and Creators Project. She also recently graduated with a Masters in Publishing and Communications.