Figures is an ongoing archival project that documents notable figures from Black British History pre-1948, which marked the arrival of HMP Windrush. These figures include entertainers, politicians, sportsmen, and regular, everyday people who made a difference in their community. Many of these figures existed in a time where cameras and film were rare, there is often limited visual documentation of them. For this reason, Figures uses illustration, text and audio to bring to life the stories of these forgotten figures. 

Figures was first exhibited in 2020 at Theatre Peckham for the duration of Black History Month, and has since been featured in Metro UK, Vice UK and BBC Two’s Great British Railway Journeys.

During 2020, Black Lives Matter protests took place across the UK after the death of George Floyd in America exposed the racial disparities in Britain as well. This also sparked the ‘black square’ movement, where many arts organisations shared a black square on social media to show solidarity with the aims of the Black Lives Matter movement. Five years on, Trump has been re-elected in America and is actively dismantling DEI initiatives, while many arts organisations in the UK have walked back on their pledges made in 2020 to diversify. 

Now returning once again to Peckham five years after its inaugural exhibition, the Figures archive has grown in size to almost 100 figures. Many of the Figures, including Dr Harold Moody, Ronald Moody and Una Marson, all lived locally to Staffordshire St on Queen’s Road, where a blue plaque is hanging in their honour.  

Showcasing the partial archive during Black History Month keeps these stories and this history alive. 

Location

Staffordshire St, Peckham, London, SE15 5TJ