Catalogue Number
NMLH.2024.74
Object Name
banner
Title
'The Journey We Made Across Land and Sea, To Build A Country Not Made For Me'
People
Seleena Daye (artist)
Description
A red banner with a central image of a Black woman holding two buckets and a mop. Images in the four corners show different types of work - a hand picking fruit; scissors, a needle and thread; gloved hands and a medical syringe; and a hand holding a fast food bag. The banner has text surrounding the central image saying 'The Journey We Made Across Land and Sea To Build A Country Not Made For Me'.
This banner was commissioned by People's History Museum from the artist Seleena Daye who explains:
"The aim of the banner was to create a voice for Migrant workers, to share their story and to take up space. Working alongside The Community programme Team, we wanted to represent as many Migrant workers as possible, form those working in Care to those in working in Hospitality and from agriculture to the textile industry. Workers who are undervalued and mistreated. The slogan on the banner âThe Journey We Made Across Land and Sea, To Build a Country Not Made for Meâ speaks about the hostility Migrants face when coming to the U.K, the narrative told in mainstream media and the poor treatment, not just as workers, but as people. Reworking a traditional banner design to include people that have been here for a long, long time."
Seleena Daye is a self taught textile artist and zine maker. Her art on the themes of race, class, sexuality and fandom are colourful, playful, and are all about taking up space. Seleena says of her motivation to make this banner with PHM: "One half of my family came to England from Jamaica in the 1950s and 1960s, so migration has always been present in my life. I was born in England but am visibly still not âfrom hereâ. To get the opportunity to create a banner, to use my skills to create a space and give a voice to those often spoken about or not heard at all, was something I couldnât pass on."
Multimedia
