Meet Natasha Bains, a fashion promotion graduate from the University for the Creative Arts, whose British Asian heritage has inspired her photo book final year project called Roses and Marigolds. Using collages, documentary photography and editorials, Natasha explores what it means to be part of the British Asian diaspora, breaking stereotypes and creating new positive representations. Read on to learn more about Natasha and her work.
What is the most valuable thing you have learnt at university?
That it’s important to start conversations about our own cultures and upbringings to bring others into this world. So that is why I base my projects about my own culture especially in university where in my class there is no one else from the same cultural background as myself. It’s important that I do explore this and create the representation around it, for others to look up to, and see themselves represented in this community. Also, I have learnt how important collaboration is and working in teams especially in the fashion industry. As it allows you to create the best work by having different inputs from people who are the best at their chosen craft. As well as this it allows a chosen project to have many different angles on it, ensuring you question the thought process behind a project.
Tell us about your current projects and work, what have you been working on?
At the moment I have just sent my photo book to print! My final project is called Roses and Marigolds, a photo book exploring the South Asian diaspora in Britain. As a British Asian myself, I struggled to see much in the industry that relates to my culture and religion. As a Sikh, I wanted to represent how much the Sikh community is present and contributes in British society. Specifically I was inspired to do this from my family's archive imagery from India, Kenya and Britain. Then as my grandad was in the British Army, my family came to Britain in the 1960's. I wanted to use this theme of past, present and future throughout my project of exploring the British Asian diaspora. As well as this theme of personal mementos and objects that we all hold close to us, in this sense it was the family archive images for me.
I incorporate themes of my own upbringing which I believe is not explored in this industry but is a part of many British Asian lives. Such as themes of religion, in particular I am a Sikh, so I include photographs of this community to represent how they contribute to British society, in a time where immigrants have negative conations to them. But also, I include themes in my project that everyone can relate to, being British Asian or not, such as family, relationships and communities. I have grown up in a British Asian household which has always been a bit more relaxed in the sense that I always had the freedom to explore and do things as I please. This inspired me to explore taboo topics in my project such as Interracial relationships, and how they are still seen in a negative light in communities, I wanted to create a talking point around this.
I have always loved experimenting with topics that are not really talked about in fashion and are formed from what is going on in society today as I believe they make the most impact. I was inspired to take this project further due to the rise of hate crime since Brexit, So I wish my project gives people an insight into a culture that has been present in society for decades and make relations to their own lives. Then I have just started research into my new project which will be a zine about interracial relationships. This was influenced from the last section in my photo book, it made me realise how underrepresented British Asians are but also how there is no representation for interracial couples. So I will be continuing with this concept to develop it into a series of zines.
What form does your final year project take?
Roses and Marigolds is a photo book about the British Asian Diaspora pulling together all my inspirations through using different mediums such as collages, documentary photography and editorials. The name of the book was chosen from combining a British and Asian element, so I chose the “Roses” for British element, then the “Marigolds” for the Asian element, as marigolds are used as a sacred flower for marriages in South Asia. I am incorporating my archive images as they are such an important part of the concept, they will be collaged and I have made Risographs out of these archives too, which will be placed inside the book alongside photography.
Creating Risographs allowed me to experiment with my love of using bright colours in my work and collage. These were so vibrant and striking I decided to use them for my front cover. Before the lockdown I travelled to different areas to document the British Asian communities this included going to Southall, Gravesend and Shepherds Bush London. I focused on documenting people and places. To capture different pillars of these communities growing and bustling in Britain. I captured architecture, British Asian run businesses and portraits. The photography is very raw and vibrant represent a truthful nature to these images as it represents a real culture and real people. Set design and still life are elements which I explore to help portray my concept. It is used to connect how fabrics and objects are important as physical mementos that are connected to our own memories of our upbringing.
I have experimented with still life to represent cultural mementos in a more abstract way which provides another take on my concept of representing the British Asian diaspora. Set design is in particular a keen interest of mine so I wanted to incorporate it into this project by creating sets for shoots taking inspiration from the environments and houses in my archive photography. I did this by incorporating different fabrics correlating to the archive imagery and objects such as a vintage chair that belonged to my nan, to keep that element of personal mementos alive.
How have you evolved as a young creative while studying / working?
During my time studying, being in a majority white class at university I was first eager to not really talk about my own culture and religion as I wanted to fit in and create “fashion” shoots etc with everyone else. However throughout my time whilst studying I have learnt that my own culture and religion are an interesting part of myself and how I create. It gave me the passion to create things about my culture as it is underrepresented in the industry. And from doing various projects I have learnt that people are genuinely interested in my culture, they just haven't been exposed to it in a positive way or at all. That is why I decided my FMP would be about my culture but my British Asian experience as I could not see anything else like it in industry.
I have learnt to adapt to events, such as the pandemic, such as doing shoots from home and collaging imagery I already had. Also I feel this time in quarantine I have been very productive as I thought when will I ever get this amount of time to create something that I really want to do, or have the time to intensely research and start off a publication where I can concentrate on that fully. I have learnt so many skills whilst studying and have used them to my advantage which I can adapt to any project I do. I have learnt how important research is for any basis of a project and as I have had spare time during quarantine it has really made me think about how grateful I am for my own culture and religion which I know now is a positive aspect of my life that I will continue to represent in industry !
What are the messages and themes behind your project that you want people to take away? Do explore any topics like diversity, sustainability or politics in your work?
The message behind my project is about embracing all cultures and different types of people and about everyone in a culture having the freedom to express themselves. In particular I was inspired to take my project further due to the raise in hate crime since Brexit, creating many negative stereotypes around immigrants. As a second-generation immigrant I feel like my work should break these stereotypes and create new positive representations about how immigrants are contributing to British society. As I have photographed British Asian communities and a charity, and this represents how they have integrated into society.
Another message behind my project is about how there are certain expectations in the South Asian community surrounding themes of relationships and womanhood. These taboo topics I have explored in my book, to create a space where people can feel comfortable to speak about these issues. Such as I have explored about being in an interracial relationship, as it is something personal to me and I know lots of other South Asian girls. However, they feel they cannot tell their families about this with the risk of being disowned. This is important to talk about as my book discusses the future of British Asians and this is becoming a more popular theme that is underrepresented in the community.
I hope this allows British Asian people that are in interracial relationships feel welcomed into the community and not afraid to speak up about it. Another message which is portrayed throughout my book is about women and womanhood. As coming from a family of predominately women, I have seen growing up and being raised by my mum how strong women are. Often in the British Asian community, women are seen as victims to the misogynistic male. In my photo book I wanted to portray them as strong and powerful individuals that have their own choices and desires. I hope this project represents to women they should be celebrated in these communities that they are the backbone of.
What’s an aspect of the fashion industry that you’re passionate about fixing or having a positive impact on?
Growing up as a British Asian there was hardly anyone that looked like me in the media/ fashion industry that I could relate to. I want to ensure my work increases the representation of British Asians in the industry, and that I create powerful visuals that make British Asians feel like they belong in British society, rather than an outcast. Also in my book I explore taboo topics that are not normally celebrated in the South Asian community, such as Interracial relationships as these are very underrepresented in the fashion industry in the terms of with a south asian counterpart. Women empowerment in the South Asian communities is another theme I explored as again in the media they are normally portrayed as the victims or just having to stay home and look after the children/husband.
Therefore in my work I have portrayed them as strong and in power of their own lives, inspired by my own mother. Also with my work I want to bridge a gap where people think that all their work just has to be about fashion only, I want to create a voice which shows people that you can explore other topics and link it to fashion in a way. For example my photo book is about a community that lives in Britain and shows different aspects of their lives, businesses, relationships and families. Something we all experience in a positive or negative way.
But my work acts like a research tool which I have explored through visual narratives which could inspire someone to do a photoshoot or create a fashion collection from. So I want to bridge this gap between fashion and culture. My book will represent the communities and the reasons and visuals behind their own cultural fashion, to help people understand the community, to steer people away from cultural appropriation. Overall I want to see more South Asians, more brown faces in the fashion industry, and I am doing my own bit to contribute!
What is your plan for the future?
My plans are to continue my visual narratives and conversations around the British Asian community with my self- published book, Roses and Marigolds. Which has lead to me starting research into a start of creating a zine about interracial relationships specifically. This was inspired by myself being in such a relationship, but also a chapter of Roses and Marigolds exploring this. Looking into the magazine industry there is little representation of interracial relationships, I think its important for me to create something to help other couples navigate cultural differences and face up to the racism that you can face with being in an interracial relationship.
As myself I have received racism from white and South Asian people for being in a mixed relationship, seen as a traitor to one community and alien to another. So I want to bridge the gap and give a voice to other people in interracial relationships to know they are not alone. This will become a series of zines about different cultures and religions in interracial relationships. Also I have just started a collaboration with Misc magazine where I will be helping to create zines for a video/ interview project about creatives post lockdown. As it’s a very hard time to keep motivated, we hope that this will inspire other creatives to keep going and they will also have a promotional video and zine they can add to their portfolios after!