Company
The Margate Exodus project was produced by Artangel and supported by Creative Partnerships Kent, Arts Council England and Channel 4. Although it was not publicised as a refugee arts project, the resonance of the subject and the location make it a project worth considering under the banner of refugee performance. Margate Exodus was a three-part project/event: a photography exhibition of young people's experience of arriving in Britain, a sculpture exhibition, a performance event and a film screened on Channel 4.
The Biblical Exodus story was chosen as a framework for the event(s) because it was felt to be a well known story that addressed the issues of migration and was accessible to people from a range of cultural backgrounds. Margate in Kent was chosen as the location because it is a town with a history of immigration and it is near to the port of Dover - a location that has pushed the question of immigration and asylum into the public domain.
The Margate Exodus project took place over a number of stages, although it culminated in the making of a film called Exodus screened on Channel 4 television in 2007. Surrounding the planning and making of the film was a number of other events, some of which contributed directly to the film and some of which were independent. In 2005 photographer Wendy Ewald led the photography project and worked with a number of young people who were new to the area. Ewald talked to the young people about their lives before they came to Margate and their hopes for their new homes. Each young person learned how to use a camera, chose the location of their portrait and compiled a list of important possessions they had brought with them to the UK. A number of large, striking black and white portraits of the young people, with their list of possessions, were hung on the sea wall. In 2006 these sea wall portraits were joined by other pieces that were displayed throughout the town.
The remaining parts of the project were centred loosely around Exodus Day (30th September 2006). Ten international artists, including Laurie Anderson, Rufus Wainwright and Scott Walker, were commissioned to record songs inspired by the plagues in the story of Exodus. Another part of the project was the building of a huge Waste Man sculpture by Anthony Gormley. On Exodus Day, musicians performed the songs written and recorded for the project and Gormley's 25 foot high figure was set alight in front of a huge audience. The event was filmed for two purposes - a documentary film by Caroline Deeds and also the main Exodus film directed by Penny Woolcock. Exodus the film involved both professional actors and large numbers of local people as actors. It was filmed on location in Margate with many of the crowd scenes being filmed on Exodus Day.
Artangel commissions and produces projects by international contemporary artists.
