Issues around migration – and the role played by workers from overseas – are even more in the spotlight now than they were when we started our project, I PACKED THIS MYSELF.
Here’s a reminder of the suitcases we created with people from Poland, Lithuania, Latvia – and a host of other countries – who had come to work, and build their lives, in Cornwall.
Suitcase painted with items that workers from eastern Europe brought with them to Cornwall – food, music, photographs, warm clothing….
Detail of painted suitcase
Mirror suitcase – the viewer sees him/herself. The message: anyone could be a migrant worker. YOU could have to leave home to find work
Suitcase turned inside out: your life is turned up-side-down if you have to leave home, and your country, to find work
Detail factory suitcase
Education Pack for schools
A design student from Falmouth went to Devon to work in a factory during his vacation. All the workers (apart from him) were from overseas. No one spoke English. The suitcase expresses isolation caused by language difficulties