A morning for doctoral students and interested parties with Johny Pitts
Emerging from 15 years of research and documentary practice aiming to capture the nuances and complexities of Black Life in Europe, I'll explore deeper, more universal themes surrounding the subaltern. How is culture and community produced outside of or even despite realms of ‘officialdom’? Taking a journey through the metaphorical underground via pirate radio stations, b-movies, cult novels and grassroots political movements, we will examine the textures, ghosts, and creativity produced by life at the figurative and literal periphery and, to paraphrase Toni Morrison, claim them as central. When work and movements emerge at odds with the demands of the market place and the initiatives of government institutions, how do we quantify its value? Should we quantify its value? We’ll look at how, in the wake of various fractures across Europe, these subaltern works and networks produced by the people who often occupy The B-Side - immigrant communities and/or the working classes - are sustained, and offer an alternative history of Europe, that might be used to suggest an alternative future.
– Johny Pitts
