Social Study
The Stations
The Stations project is a photographic study that uses the Stations of the Cross as a road-map to engage with the emotional journey and suffering of refugees. ‘The Stations’ aimed to create a deeper emotional engagement that provoked action to support refugees, and in particular the 3500 unaccompanied minors in camps across Europe and the Middle East. In partnership with the charity Home for Good, the project became instrumental in helping change UK government policy on the acceptance of unaccompanied minors.
The refugee crisis is a toxic, complicated issue, to a point where many people have failed to engage with it. Based on Christ’s Stations of the Cross, the stations project aimed to create engagement, but not dictate the response – it relied on the audiences to respond in the way that they felt appropriate, and trusted them to do so. It did this by focusing on the emotional journey of the refugees rather than their geographical journey – on the individuals and their stories rather than the geo-political challenges. This was a new space for this subject.
The project aimed to create a deeper emotional engagement that provoked action to support refugees, and in particular the 3500 unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASCs) in camps across Europe and the Middle East. The project was entirely self-initiated by Marksteen and all proceeds went to the charity Home For Good.
It was important for the project to engage a wide audience with the emotional journey of refugees and the dangers faced trying to reach safety. They are shown not as groups or races of people but as individuals. We are given a glimpse into the lives behind the sensationalistic headlines.
A series of intimate black and white portraits taken in the Lebanon and in Calais captures the daily lives of refugees and their families. We're given a personal insight into their surroundings and gain a sense of their hope, fear, frustration, faith and fortitude in the face of traumatic upheaval.
The objective of the stations is to help the Christian faithful to make a spiritual pilgrimage through contemplation of the Passion of Christ. By reflecting the traditional stations in the 14 central images of the project, audiences are invited to reflect on the journey of personal suffering being undergone by countless refugees around the world.
To contrast with the black and white images, a fluorescent orange the colour of life jackets was used throughout the campaign that comprised web, press, outdoor, DM pack and multi-site exhibition.
Containing a newspaper with all 42 images from the project as well as a wristband, a set of postcards and a limited edition signed print - a response pack was created which could be sold to raise funds for the charity Home for Good. The outer pack was made from silver foil to reflect the material wrapped around refugees when rescued from perilous sea voyages. The packs were distributed to MPs before the important vote on the Dubs Amendment to the government's bill regarding immigrant minors.
THE RESPONSE PACK
The Pack £9.99 + P&P
The Stations pack includes a newspaper with all the 40 images and stories from the project. The pack also includes a journey together wrist band, a signed print and a full set of postcards with each Station.
All net proceeds from the sale of this pack go to our charity partner – Home for Good.
The newspaper contained all the images taken for the Stations project with detail around the making of the project and graphics showing the migration routes through Europe of immigrants coming up from Africa and beyond. A set of 16 postcards featured the main images selected for the Stations.
We created a stand-alone website for The Stations project. This provided an online home for the history of the project, additional detail on refugee migration and news of the impact that the project was having on local communities, alongside discussion in the media. We created a kit of artwork for anyone interested in staging their own Stations exhibition. The site also contained merchandise from the project and links to affiliated organisations for anyone looking to donate.
As momentum around the project grew, The Stations received generous offers of media coverage in several national newspapers including The Sunday Times and FT Weekend. A 16 sheet billboard space was also donated and The Stations ad was viewed by thousands of commuters in Queensbury, West London.
Completely self-funded, Marksteen along with ASHA & Co, Louise Dawson, Julie Tomlin, Justin Brierley and Krish Kandiah worked together to campaign the art project and create the impact. All resources by these organisations and people were donated. The project crucially targeted the Christian community in the UK via the charity Home For Good. These people would be statistically the most likely to adopt or foster the children on arrival.
1.1m
The Stations featured in the BBC1 programme 'The Battle for Chrstianity' reaching an audience of over a million viewers
£1,483
raised for Home for Good by St Martin-in-The Fields during the exhibition, through sales of The Stations packs, posters and other donations
12th May
On the 25th April 2016, The Stations packs were personally delivered to 30 MPs. On the 12th May, Section 67 of The Immigration Act 2016 became law
Effecting a Change in UK Immigration Policy
The Stations response packs were personally delivered to MPs due to debate the fate of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASCs) on the morning of 25th April 2016. After a debate lasting over two hours, The Dubs Amendment was narrowly voted down. An amended version of the Dubs Amendment was sent back by the House of Lords (it removed the quota of 3,000 UASCs). On the 9th of May this went through Commons unopposed. It was made law on the 12th May.
The Stations created engagement across public space, education, business, media and also ultimately helped lead change in legislation, with the government U-turn in the passing of the Dubs Amendment in parliament.
