Sanctuary

Sanctuary explores a community of refugees, asylum seekers and migrated people. Through collaborative image making the project presents people in contrast to the prevalence of discrimination and misrepresentation in society.

New arrivals seeking status in the UK are housed in “hotels”. These are tightly controlled environments where amongst other things, residents are restricted in the amount of time they spend outside, what they can eat and basic home comforts.

Days turn into weeks, months and years.

These images show a safe space, one that provides contrast to daily life. A sea of colour contrasting the grey and a presentation of the participants as people, not defined by status but as individuals to be treated with respect and dignity.

The quotes that feature in this publication come from a series of interviews conducted with residents of refugee hotels. These people do not feature in these photographs. It is a sad reality that they could face repercussions for being involved and speaking about their experience. The aim of this publication is to open debate about the treatment of people arriving in this country.å