Duchamp & Sons with Ayo Akingbade

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Session 1 - Wed 29 Jan 2020 - Meeting Ayo

On a cold winter evening in January, Duchamp & Sons met with British Nigerian artist and filmmaker Ayo Akingbade (b. 1994, London) in Whitechapel Gallery’s Creative Studio. This was the first in a series of meetings leading to a new Commission in 2021. Through screenings and discussions, Ayo shared her career journey and influences, and touched on themes from housing and gentrification to belonging and psychogeography. The artist is working with the group to explore local and personal histories, alongside elements of filmmaking including script writing, shooting and sound.

Q&A with D&S

D&S: How did you know you wanted to become a filmmaker? Ayo: If you don't know what to do, try and figure out what you like. I wanted to be in the fashion industry when I was younger but I didn't fit into it. Then I discovered filmmakers like Spike Lee who were making things about their lives and environments using whatever equipment they had.  

D&S: Is it important to go to film school? Ayo: I would say yes because you learn about the history of film, meet other likeminded people and learn the rules… like ‘an actor should never look directly into camera’. Film school taught me the rules and then I broke them.

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To begin our explorations of ‘place’, Ayo proposed Duchamp & Sons to group themselves into the parts of London they were from or lived and highlight their landmarks. With many members hailing from east London, the decision was to split into two – Tower Hamlets and other east London boroughs. Conversations led to questions about what constitutes a landmark, google searches of places and the discovery of unfamiliar sites within familiar surroundings. The sharing was a good icebreaker for new and old members to learn more about each other.  

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Session 2 - Wed 5 Feb 2020 - Chisenhale Gallery

In a joint youth forum session with The ChisenhaleHz at Chisenhale Gallery, Duchamp & Sons discovered the work of British Bangladeshi artist Imram Perretta. Shot in a community centre in Tower Hamlets, the destructors (2019) is a multi-channel film which explores both personal and collective experiences of ‘coming of age’ for young Muslim men in the UK through the eyes of four boys.

Following an introduction to the exhibition by Curator Emma Moore, the group headed next door to Chisenhale Studios for a discussion. In small groups they shared questions and reflected on Perretta’s work. Their responses considered issues of institutional racism, marginalization and underrepresentation. Everyone agreed that the use of sound, the location and the obscured camera angles had been crucial in making a powerful narrative.  

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Most Hollywood ‘coming of age’ films portray a happy or romantic experience but this film made it seem unhappy and real.

I felt empty after watching this as a person of colour.

Filming in an old local school made me think of how stereotyping and racism can start at a young age.

The war on terror and prejudice against the Muslim community seems ingrained in the mind. 

The personal stories of the boys were made impersonal (in a good way) by not revealing their faces. In this way each story becomes more universal so that the viewer can relate.

I like how familiar games were made unfamiliar by the camera angles creating something which resembled navigating a minefield. 

The sound felt oppressive and stirred up feelings of anxiety and grief, angst and paranoia. Having speakers surrounding the space made me feel like I was part of their world.

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Session 3 - Wed 12 Feb 2020 - Fieldwork on Home and Gentrification

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Continuing our exploration of place, home and gentrification, the session started with a screening of Ayo’s film Dear Babylon (2019) that follows three art students eager to raise awareness about their east end estate which is being threatened by the passing of a new bill. The film features interviews with tenants and workers on the future of social housing.  

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Following a discussion with the artist, the group agreed to conduct fieldwork in the Gallery’s neighbourhood. In three groups, they targeted Aldgate, Brick Lane, Altab Ali Park and Whitechapel High Street to capture a wide range of answers.

How long have you lived here? How has this area changed in the last 20 years? What does gentrification mean to you? Has the effect been good or bad for you?   Do you feel part of the community in the East End?

These questions prompted discussions with shopkeepers, TFL workers and passers-by. Dialogues were recorded on mobile phones and captured in writing.

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It used to be the developers kicking people out but now it’s the local council.

Gentrification has advantages and disadvantages.

I’ve been here for 19 years. There used to be a sea food place here for 100 years called Tubby Isaac. It closed down a couple of years ago. A lot of things have closed down.

More people mean more business.

I don’t really feel a sense of community as I’ve just moved here from up north and I’m living in south London but I know a couple of the other shops on this road and they are nice.

Members shared their findings back at the Gallery. The ‘BrickLane’ group found it surprisingly easy to conduct the interviews. They took turns in approaching people or asking questions. The ‘Aldgate’ group felt sometimes uncertain whether spaces were public or private, so they turned their focus to shops and Aldgate East station. The ‘Whitechapel’ group had encountered very engaged participants who were happy to be interviewed, although some had no idea what gentrification meant.

The overall consensus, it seemed, was that the impact of gentrification had been felt positively or negatively depending on the position of each constituent.

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Session 4 - Wed 4 March 2020 -           Script writing with producer and script editor Fawzia Mahmood

Film producer and script editor Fawzia Mahmood led a session on writing for screen. She began by sharing her unconventional route into the film industry - having initially studied Economics. Her interest in working with filmmakers is to highlight underrepresented stories.

The session was framed around thoughts and ideas on home and gentrification.

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