Canto explores the East Kent border of the UK, the closest coastline to mainland Europe. Utilising photography, video and text this body of work combines the visual exploration of the physical border landscape with the language used to describe the complex issues of migration and people forced to flee and seek refuge in the 21st Century.
In the 2016 EU referendum over 60% of voters in Dover, Shepway and Thanet the closest areas to the European mainland voted in favour of leaving the European Union. Largely compelled by the xenophobic rhetoric of the Vote Leave campaign, immigration was cited by one in three voters as being the most critical issue related to the referendum.
The realities of this landscape shows years of neglect with areas of poverty and deprivation alongside long-term deindustrialisation. This work aims to provide a visual identity to a coastal border that is now the focus of attention from the media and politicians in relation to the so-called migrant crisis.
MARRIED MIGRANTS BENEFITS SCANDAL, NEW LAW! TO STOP ILLEGAL MIGRANTS, 1,300 MIGRANTS A DAY POUR IN, MIGRANTS FLOODING BACK TO BRITAIN, 7.5 MIGRANTS LIVE IN BRITAIN, SCANDAL OF ‘OPEN DOOR’ FOR FOREIGN STUDENTS, MIGRANTS DO TAKE BRITISH JOBS, MARRIED MIGRANTS BENEFITS SCANDAL, ALL MIGRANTS TO GET A BRITISH PENSION, GO TO BRITAIN FOR BENEFITS SAYS EU, EU WANTS MIGRANTS TO TAKE OUR JOBS, MIGRANTS MUST GET BENEFITS ORDERS EU, FOREIGN FAMILIES RAKE IN BENEFITS, MIGRANTS RUSH TO GET OUR JOBS, MIGRANTS MAKE MUGS OF US ALL, MIGRANTS BLAMED FOR SURGE IN CRIME, UK BORDERS THE DAMNING TRUTH, FAMILY TORN APART BY DRINK-DRIVE ILLEGAL MIGRANT, UK BORDER BOSS: BORDERS ARE JUST A PAIN IN THE A***, GPS TOLD: YOU MUST TREAT FOREIGNERS, 370,000 MIGRANTS ON THE DOLE, MAY: I CAN AND I WILL CRACK DOWN ON IMMIGRANTS, ILLEGALS ENTER UK ON ‘PASSPORTS FOR HIRE’, GOD SAVE THE QUEEN TEST FOR MIGRANTS, 500,000 LET IN UK WITHOUT CHECKS, IMMIGRANTS FUEL RECORD SURGE IN UK POPULATION, WELL STOP MIGRANTS IF EURO COLLAPSES, AMNESTY’ FOR 120,000 MIGRANTS, SUN SAYS DRAW A RED LINE ON IMMIGRATION OR ELSE!, ILLEGALS’ GUARDING OLYMPICS, MIGRANTS TO GET MORE BENEFITS, MIGRANTS FUEL UK BABY BOOM, MIGRANTS SET TO FLOOD IN, MIGRANT BEGGARS ON £36,000 A YEAR, MIGRANT NUMBERS AT CRISIS POINT, NEW FARCE OVER MIGRANT CROOKS, I’LL STOP MIGRANT BENEFITS, HOW ROMANIAN CRIMINALS TERRORISE OUR STREETS, 79% SAY WE MUST BAN EU MIGRANTS, MIGRANTS SHUN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, MIGRANTS FACE NEW BAN ON BENEFITS, WE MUST STOP THE MIGRANT INVASION, NEW EU GUIDE TO CLAIM BRITISH BENEFITS, ASYLUM SEEKERS COST E1.5M A DAY, BATTLE TO KEEP OUT EU MIGRANTS, OUTRAGE AT NEW MIGRANT FLOOD, BRITS TO GET HOMES FIRST, MIGRANTS MUST GET BENEFITS SAY EU, 1-IN-5 MIGRANTS HEADS TO BRITAIN, MIGRANTS CHANGE BRITAIN FOREVER, NEW FEARS OVER ILLEGAL MIGRANTS, FOREIGNERS IN £70M NHS RIP-OFF, 98% DEMAND BAN NEW MIGRANTS, 75,000 SAY NO MORE EU MIGRANTS, YOU PAY TO TEACH MIGRANTS MANNERS, 150,000 SAY NO TO NEW EU MIGRANTS, CRACKDOWN ON EU MIGRANTS, BRITAIN IS FULL UP AND FED UP, EPIDEMIC OF HEALTH TOURISTS ‘COSTS US BILLIONS’, VITAL MIGRANT ID. CHECKS SCRAPPED, COALITION AT WAR OVER MIGRANTS, NOW UN. MEDDLERS LECTURE BRITAIN ON MIGRANTS, MIGRANTS WILL BE CHARGED BY NHS, MIGRANTS HANDED £1M A WEEK FOR CHILDREN BACK HOME, THE RIOTERS WE CAN’T KICK OUT, 4.000 FOREIGN MURDERERS: AND RAPISTS WE CAN’T THROW OUT, TRUE TOLL OF MASS MIGRATION ON UK LIFE, 500,000 MIGRANTS GET SOCIAL HOUSING, MIGRANTS TOLD: FIND WORK IN 6 MONTHS OR NO BENEFITS, QUEUE HERE TO WORK IN BRITAIN, £10K BILL TO TEACH ASYLUM SEEKER TO FLY, POPULATION OF BRITAIN TO SOAR BY 10M IN JUST 25 YEARS, A SPECTACULAR MISTAKE ON IMMIGRATION, MIGRATION: I DO SHARE YOUR CONCERNS, IMMIGRATION: THE BACKLASH, SLASH BENEFITS FOR EU MIGRANTS, BRITAIN’S BORDERS IN CHAOS -OFFICIAL, MIGRANT INFLUX FUELS NEW CRISIS IN SCHOOLS, MIGRANT WAR ON BRITISH STREETS, ROMA MIGRANT INVASION WILL START UK RIOTS, CAMERON’S MIGRANT CRACKDOWN, CABLE HITS OUT AT TORIES OVER MIGRANT ‘PANIC’, UN CONDEMNS CAMERON OVER IMMIGRANT LAW, RACIST’ SPOT CHECKS IN MAY’S HUNT FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS, IMMIGRANTS TOLD: SPEAK ENGLISH OR LOSE YOUR BENEFITS, CABLE:TORIES PANICKING ON IMMIGRATION, A&E PATIENTS TOLD: PROVE YOU’RE NOT MIGRANTS, BENEFITS SQUEEZE ON EU IMMIGRANTS, HIGH-RISK’ IMMIGRANTS WILL PAY TO ENTER UK, 4M MIGRANTS VOTE TO COME HERE, IMMIGRANT CRIME SOARS, FOREIGN NHS CHEATS PUSH ASIDE CANCER PATIENTS, NEW WAVE OF IMMIGRANTS BEGINS, SPEAK ENGLISH OR LOSE BENEFITS, MIGRANTS ARE GIVEN FREE ACCESS TO OUR GPS, MPS WANT IMMIGRANT BAN TO SAVE BRITISH JOBS, RIGHTS ACT LETS FOREIGN CRIMINALS STAY IN UK, IMMIGRANTS FILL ONE IN FIVE SKILLED BRITISH JOBS, NO BAR ON BULGARIAN IMMIGRANTS, ROMANIAN MIGRANTS ‘WILL HELP ECONOMY’, JOBS FOR BRITONS, NOT IMMIGRANTS, BRITAIN SAYS NO TO SYRIA’S REFUGEES, MIGRANTS WILL HAVE TO PAY AT A&E, EXPOSED: THE TRUE COST OF OUR OPEN BORDERS, CHEEKY BEGGARS, LEGAL AID CURB FOR MIGRANTS, TRUE SCALE OF EUROPEAN IMMIGRATION, THE FOREIGN BEGGARS THAT BRITAIN CAN’T STOP, MAY GOES TO WAR OVER EU MIGRANTS, CLAMPDOWN ON NHS CARE FOR MIGRANTS, IDLE’ BRITONS ARE ALLOWING ROMANIANS TO TAKE JOBS, POLICE ALLOW IMMIGRANT OFFENDERS TO SLIP THE NET, CAMERON VOWS TO CUT BENEFITS FOR MIGRANTS, BENEFIT CUT URGED TO CURB NEW MIGRANTS, MINORITIES TOLD: YOUR CULTURE IS NO DEFENCE, CAMERON TO DENY AID FOR IMMIGRANTS, CAMERON FACES VOTER FURY OVER IMMIGRANTS, EU MIGRANTS FACE TOUGH NEW CURBS ON BENEFITS, CAMERON LINES UP MERKEL TO CURB MIGRANT BENEFITS, ROMANIANS IN UK LIKE ‘BRITS WITH FRENCH VILLAS’, MIGRANTS SET TO LOSE BENEFITS FOR CHILDREN LIVING ABROAD, 3,000 ILLEGAL MIGRANTS A MONTH, 4 IN 5 NEW NURSES ON NHS WARDS ARE FOREIGN, LABOUR CHIEFS WARN MPS: DON’T MENTION IMMIGRATION, UK PASSPORTS FOR MIGRANTS WITHOUT ANY CRIME CHECKS, NOW WE’RE IMPORTING BRICKIES ON £1.000 PER WEEK!, POLICE CHECKS FOR MIGRANTS, I’M READY TO LEAD BRITAIN OUT OF EUROPE IF MIGRANT REFORMS FAIL, WHAT ABOUT BRITISH WORKERS?, MIGRANTS: FOUR YEAR BENEFITS BAN, COALITION ABANDONS TARGET TO REDUCE MIGRATION, EU ‘MUST GIVE WAY TO UK ON MIGRANTS’, EU BENEFIT TOURISTS FACE BEING SENT HOME, MIGRANTS FACE CRACKDOWN ON BENEFITS, THE END FOR BENEFIT TOURISM, CALAIS GOES TO WAR OVER ‘SOFT TOUCH’ UK BENEFITS, HOME OFFICE IN ‘MESS’ OVER ASYLUM, MERKEL: I WILL BLOCK PM ON IMMIGRANTS, SCANDAL OF VANISHING FOREIGN CRIMINALS, NO 10 SEEKS EMERGENCY CURBS ON MIGRATION, BORIS CALLS FOR QUOTAS ON EU MIGRANTS, YOU CAN’T IGNORE MIGRATION NOW, MIGRANT INVASION: ARMY ON ALERT, CALAIS ‘IS BESIEGED’ BY GANGS OF MIGRANTS, RECLAIM OUR BORDERS, PM WARNED, BORDER CONTROLS IN CHAOS, OPEN BORDERS: A NEW FIASCO, UK SPECIAL FORCES HELP SAVE 30,000 REFUGEES, MORE FOREIGN CONVICTS WIN RIGHT TO STAY, CALAIS IN CRISIS OVER UK-BOUND MIGRANTS, MIGRANTS HANDED £5BN TAX CREDITS, CAMERON’S IMMIGRATION CRACKDOWN, NEW BENEFITS CRACKDOWN ON EU MIGRANTS, MIGRANT FAMILY ON £55K A YEAR BENEFITS, POPULATION OF BRITAIN RISES FASTEST IN EUROPE, POLITICIANS BLAMED FOR HOSTILITY TO MIGRANTS, CAMERON TELLS UK MUSLIMS: BE MORE BRITISH, 208,000 PASSPORTS HANDED TO MIGRANTS IN ONE YEAR, EU’S LOOMING MIGRANT TRAGEDY, £30M IN BENEFITS IS SENT ABROAD, MIGRATION BLOW TO PM AS BRITAIN VOTES, MIGRATION IS OUT OF CONTROL, ASYLUM SEEKERS IN 4 STAR HOTELS, EU ‘WILL NOT BUDGE’ IN NEGOTIATIONS WITH UK ON IMMIGRATION, MELTING POT UK, DON’T ASK MIGRANTS HOW LONG THEY’RE STAYING, PRESSURE ON CAMERON TO EXPEL JOBLESS EU MIGRANTS, MIDDLE CLASS BLAMED FOR MIGRATION, PM’S IMMIGRATION PLEDGE IN TATTERS, MIGRATION SOARS: GOOD SAYS CABLE, AN IMMIGRATION CRISIS ON BRITAIN’S DOORSTEP, IMMIGRATION MINISTER QUITS OVER CLEANER, ENGLISH A SECOND LANGUAGE AT 1 IN 9 SCHOOLS, CAMERON SET FOR U-TURN ON SYRIAN REFUGEES
