Profile
My research project is a LAHP Collaborative Doctoral Award with the Whitechapel Gallery, Bishopsgate Institute and the Museum of Youth Culture. It is based on a collection of hundreds of photographs and written materials produced by members of the Brady Youth Club in east London during the 1930s-1970s and examines the theoretical, empirical and methodological issues in the display and reception of autobiographical photographs and writing in museums and galleries. Drawing on Pierre Nora’s theory of lieux de mémoire (sites of memory that position us in relation to the memory-object) this project builds on my previous research into the history of the club and its members. I have curated four exhibitions of these materials at various sites in east London and wrote an MA thesis that examined how the study of the Brady Photographic Archive might contribute to the understanding of the changing reception and use of vernacular photography in art history. I hold a BA in Psychology from UCL, an MA in Gender & Society from Middlesex University and an MA in Art History from the Open University.
Research
Research Interests:
- Vernacular photography
- Display and reception theory
- Youth representation
- Curatorial processes
Supervision
Professor Alastair Owens and Dr Libby Saxton