Becoming Herstory

This is a series of self-portraits is a photographic meditation on the idea of belonging, migration, and family. Through diverse clothing and makeup, I transform myself into different women in my family, and bring to light the war-torn complexity of Eastern Europe.

I wear clothes which my mum has been bringing over from Poland to the UK over the last 20 years. Many of the items are wear are products of separate migration journeys, smuggled across borders during the Communist regime in Eastern Europe.

The photos are inspired by conversations with my mum, where she stressed the importance of these items in helping her feel physically and emotionally connected to Poland. Through this process of becoming different women in my family, I reconnect with a part of my identity which I spent suppressing as an immigrant in the UK, whilst trying to assimilate into the British society. This method also helped me to imagine who I might have been had my family not migrated from Poland to the UK.