Works - Photos
Damien L Williams
Between the world and me
“And the sooty details of the scene rose, thrusting themselves between the world and me...” Richard Wright
This abstract image inspired by the quote from the "Poem Between The World and Me" explores the relationship between the colonialism and the land from the perspective of 'other'.
From the series "Black Other"
As a melanin-rich English male I am often classified in a way that means I never belong. When I’m in England I am not English, I am of Jamaican descent. In Jamaica I am too English. In Singapore I cannot be English because my hair is black. In Dubai I am African, English people are White. Although the stimulus for this project was prompted by the question “Where are you from?” The actual stimulus is the response on hearing that I am English... “oh!”. In that subtle and somewhat abstract phoneme a world of unspoken meaning exists. An identity fractures, or is all identity the accumulation of many parts. Culture becomes only skin deep and fails to account for soul. Until it is appropriated for joy. Black Other explores how it feels to constantly be that “oh!” to others, whilst also seeking to understand one’s true place in the world. A conversation on how it feels on the inside to be an outsider.
This abstract image inspired by the quote from the "Poem Between The World and Me" explores the relationship between the colonialism and the land from the perspective of 'other'.
From the series "Black Other"
As a melanin-rich English male I am often classified in a way that means I never belong. When I’m in England I am not English, I am of Jamaican descent. In Jamaica I am too English. In Singapore I cannot be English because my hair is black. In Dubai I am African, English people are White. Although the stimulus for this project was prompted by the question “Where are you from?” The actual stimulus is the response on hearing that I am English... “oh!”. In that subtle and somewhat abstract phoneme a world of unspoken meaning exists. An identity fractures, or is all identity the accumulation of many parts. Culture becomes only skin deep and fails to account for soul. Until it is appropriated for joy. Black Other explores how it feels to constantly be that “oh!” to others, whilst also seeking to understand one’s true place in the world. A conversation on how it feels on the inside to be an outsider.
Damien L Williams
Untitled #44
This abstract image explores diaspora and Blackness, commenting on how Race and ethnicity are unreliable identifiers.
From the series "Black Other"
As a melanin-rich English male I am often classified in a way that means I never belong. When I’m in England I am not English, I am of Jamaican descent. In Jamaica I am too English. In Singapore I cannot be English because my hair is black. In Dubai I am African, English people are White. Although the stimulus for this project was prompted by the question “Where are you from?” The actual stimulus is the response on hearing that I am English... “oh!”. In that subtle and somewhat abstract phoneme a world of unspoken meaning exists. An identity fractures, or is all identity the accumulation of many parts. Culture becomes only skin deep and fails to account for soul. Until it is appropriated for joy. Black Other explores how it feels to constantly be that “oh!” to others, whilst also seeking to understand one’s true place in the world. A conversation on how it feels on the inside to be an outsider.
From the series "Black Other"
As a melanin-rich English male I am often classified in a way that means I never belong. When I’m in England I am not English, I am of Jamaican descent. In Jamaica I am too English. In Singapore I cannot be English because my hair is black. In Dubai I am African, English people are White. Although the stimulus for this project was prompted by the question “Where are you from?” The actual stimulus is the response on hearing that I am English... “oh!”. In that subtle and somewhat abstract phoneme a world of unspoken meaning exists. An identity fractures, or is all identity the accumulation of many parts. Culture becomes only skin deep and fails to account for soul. Until it is appropriated for joy. Black Other explores how it feels to constantly be that “oh!” to others, whilst also seeking to understand one’s true place in the world. A conversation on how it feels on the inside to be an outsider.
Damien L Williams
Untitled74
As a melanin-rich English male I am often classified in a way that means I never belong. When I’m in England I am not English, I am of Jamaican descent. In Jamaica I am too English. In Singapore I cannot be English because my hair is black. In Dubai I am African, English people are White. Although the stimulus for this project was prompted by the question “Where are you from?” The actual stimulus is the response on hearing that I am English... “oh!”. In that subtle and somewhat abstract phoneme a world of unspoken meaning exists. An identity fractures, or is all identity the accumulation of many parts. Culture becomes only skin deep and fails to account for soul. Until it is appropriated for joy. Black Other explores how it feels to constantly be that “oh!” to others, whilst also seeking to understand one’s true place in the world. A conversation on how it feels on the inside to be an outsider.
Damien L Williams
Chromatic Abhorration#1
From the series Chromatic Abhorration which is an exploration of how colour can be used to reshape our perception and distort how we see the world. These images take everyday objects, most of which have divisive connotations, and through manipulating perspective and colour change their meaning and thus their identity. At least on the surface anyway.