EMA 
Installation : Sprayed reclaimed scaffoldings, Wood, String, Coloured Pens. 2023

EMA 
Installation: 4K Video & Audio. Mixed Media Sculpture: Reclaimed Scaffolding, Wood, String, Coloured Pens. 2023

An installation created as a specific local response to the 25th anniversary of Refugee Week. Viewers were encouraged to write, draw, or craft Ema (common to Japan, in which Shinto and Buddhist worshippers write prayers or wishes) on wood plaques which they attached to the structure. The work, shown at the 2023 Richmond Art and Ideas Festival, reflects on the media impact at the time which had turned the act of migration into a politically charged discussion of rights. However, refugees and asylum seekers in the UK face often difficult situations, including lengthy asylum processes, limited work rights, poverty, and mental health concerns. By writing a message viewers were encouraged to reflect upon the refugee journey, to welcome them with compassion, and to create community and build solidarity to refugees.