An award-winning photographer is sharing the stories of Salford’s black, Asian and minority ethnic groups through an exhibition at Salford Museum and Art Gallery.
‘Still I Rise’ is a collection of stories and portraits, taken by award-winning photographer Allie Crewe, to give an insight into the lives of people from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds who work in the city’s public and voluntary sectors.
The idea for the exhibition came in 2019 from a group of volunteers who act as links to the city’s mental health services. The volunteers represent people in their communities – including African, Yemeni and Chinese. They teamed up with diversity and equality teams at Salford CCG (now NHS Greater Manchester Integrated Care) and Salford City Council, and acclaimed photographer Allie Crewe, a University of Salford graduate and one of the winners of the Portrait of Britain 2019 award. Working together, they created a small selection of stories and portraits to inspire future generations, which were exhibited at The Lowry. This was followed up with further stories and portraits in 2020.
Now for the first time, the collection including 18 new stories and portraits, is available for the public to view at Salford Museum and Art Gallery. The exhibition runs throughout Black History Month (October) until 4 December.
New portraits include Councillor Sharmina August, Lead Member for Inclusive Economy, Anti-Poverty and Equalities, Dr Owen Williams OBE, Chief Executive of NHS Northern Care Alliance Group and Pipeeh Miyalu, co-founding member of Warm Hut, a charity that supports African people living in Salford.
Councillor August said ““Allie’s photos are fantastic and I’m proud to be part of this exhibition and have my own photo displayed. It’s a great way to celebrate Black History Month and show positive role models who are making a big difference in our city. I particularly hope the exhibition inspires young people and would encourage people to come down to the museum to see the portraits and stories for themselves.”
Dr Williams OBE said “It is great to be a part of the ‘Still I Rise’ creative project and hopefully people will see and feel that celebrating our diversity is something that the people of Salford and beyond should be proud about.”
Pipeeh Miyalu said “I am delighted to take part in Still I Rise. For me, Black History Month is an opportunity to keep on pressing, keep on striving toward my goal to empower more BAME women.”
More information about the Still I Rise exhibition can be found at www.salford.gov.uk/stillirise
