Young Photographers Project: Objects and Me

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By Rudi Schmidt
Photography Young people
We asked Year 10 photography students from Kingsdale Foundation School to use objects to represent how they see themselves and how they want to be seen.

Objects surround us every day. From mobile phones to toothbrushes, they are the bedrock of our daily lives.

But some objects are more special to us. They give us comfort and joy. They connect us with culture, heritage, and memories. You could say that they form a part of how we see ourselves.

In collaboration with Fix Flash we asked Year 10 photography students from Kingsdale Foundation School to use objects to represent how they see themselves and how they want to be seen.

Working with Elle Andrews and Marc Sethi the Year 10 students shot and printed out portrait photos of themselves. They combined their photo with personal objects and objects from our Handling Collection, to reflect their personality and identity. They then experimented with lighting to set the scene.

The result is these “object collages”. Playful, fun, and thoughtful, each one tells their own story.

Alysha

Woman wearing black top and jeans holds a bird model surrounded by giant models of birds, lamps and a shell
Alysha with objects including her favourite - the coconut bird
Woman wearing a black top holds a model of a bird
Close up of Alysha's image
My favourite item is the coconut bird. When I was two or three I had visited Barbados, this was my first visit to my family abroad, and it was a gift from them. The other items I had selected were all from different countries, the main thing that drew me to these items was the fascinating details. From the intricate design on the brass objects to the feather pattern on the bird.
Alysha

Ayanna

Woman standing near a starfish, drum, afro comb, and green, yellow an red striped hat
Ayanna among her chosen objects
Woman standing with starfish at her feet and a drum behind her
Close up of Ayanna's image
I chose my objects because they relate to me as a person. Personality-wise and culturally too.
Ayanna

Dion

Woman stands with hair over her face, with shells and figurines around her
Dion's image
Woman with hair over her face wearing a Kings of Leon tshirt and with figurines around her
Close up of Dion's image

Gracie

Taxidermy ferret, a shell, the Horniman Walrus, a green parrot and a woman, all shot to look the same size
Gracie among the objects she thought looked the most interesting
Girl wearing headphones round her neck and glasses, there is a stuffed parrot next to her
Close up of Gracie's image
I picked [the] majority of my objects because they looked quite interesting and I felt like they had some sort of personality to them, I’d say my favourite was probably the ferret because in my head I made up a little story for him and thought he was quite sweet.
Gracie

Iman

A young woman stands on a drum. To the right hand side there are two more drums and in the centre there are two round decorations
Iman chose objects that represent their culture and heritage
A young woman standing superimposed to be standing on a drum
Close up of Iman's image
The objects I chose reflect my culture, my heritage, my history, and who I am as a person – me!
Iman

Oli

Photo of a young man edited to look small next to a chess board, a deck of cards and a taxidermy rabbit
Oli's image
Photo of a young man edited to look small,he is holding a feather and wearing a hard hat
Close up of Oli's image

Oliver

Photo of a young man edited twice into a pile of objects including a drum, a keyboard, a colourful elephant and a butterfly
Oliver chose objects that made him who he is now
Photo of a young man edited to look small next to a keyboard and colourful elephant
Close up of Oliver's image
My chosen objects were things that shaped me as person, and things that were significant to me in my childhood that made me the person I am now.
Oliver

Rosa

Photo of a young woman edited to look small amongst some objects including an egg, a taxidermy squirrel and an animal skull
The egg reminded Rosa of her Iranian heritage
Photo of a young woman holding her hand to her heart. She is edited to look small next to a branch from a cotton bush
Close up of Rosa's image
I picked the egg because the inscription on it reminds me of my Iranian heritage. My chosen objects were things that related to my background and culture. I wanted to be able to express my identity through the objects that surrounded my cut out image.
Rosa

Rosalie

Photo of a young woman edited to look small next to a horse figure and a shell
Rosalie's favourite object was the butterfly
Three images of a young woman edited to look small amongst objects including a shell, a starfish, a butterfly, a colourful elephant and a horse figure
Close up of Rosalie's image
I think my favourite object was the butterfly as my middle name translated in Iranian “pavarneh” is butterfly; I feel like I’ve connected with that word in so many different ways and I think butterflies are really interesting and unique creatures. My objects were to close to home and my culture. I enjoyed surrounding my image with objects that really meant something to me.
Rosalie