How Sarah turns deafness into a cool style
I’m thrilled to share news that my photo of Sarah Adedeji is a winner in this year’s Portrait of Britain.
Portrait of Britain is the UK's highest-profile photo competition. For the past nine years, it has annually celebrated the rich diversity of our nation. It's the first time the winners include a deaf portrait by a deaf photographer. Inclusion matters.
From 5th January onwards, the winners go on displayfor one month via thousands JCDecaux digital advertising screens visible to millions of people - in high streets and shopping malls, at bus shelters, major train stations and airports.
As Sarah's cochlear implant weaves gracefully into her orange stitch cornrows, she wears her deafness like a cool fashion statement. A small tattoo of a mute button behind Sarah's ear reinforces her proud and assertive deaf identity.
"Photography was invented in the 1830s, just as the deaf community began to emerge," says Stephen. "And yet two centuries later, deaf people are still almost invisible in the art photography canon - galleries, books, journals, collections. My work is all about changing this."
"It's awesome to be featured in Portrait of Britain," says Sarah. "For me as a Black Deaf woman, I'm part of a minority within a minority. The portrait both encapsulates the diversity of Britain and contributes to the growing visibility of deaf people as something to celebrate."
Sarah’s photo will also feature in the Portrait of Britain Volume 8 book. Published by Bluecoat, pre-orders are now available.
Stephen Iliffe is a deaf community photographer, writer and advocate. His Deaf Mosaic project exhibits over 120 intimate portraits and stories of deaf people from diverse backgrounds occupations.
Sarah Adedeji is one of the few professionally-qualified audiologists to be deaf herself and has worked in major NHS hospitals. She is also an author, a sign language singer and a dancer.
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