Art & Culture
The Line announces a new public art commission in the Royal Docks
This summer, Togo-born, Brussels-based photographer Hélène Amouzou will realise a major new photo installation in the Royal Docks, co-curated by The Line and Arup Phase 2.
Working in collaboration with Praxis, a local charity supporting refugees and migrants, Hélène will explore themes of identity, migration and memory. The project will launch on 18th June 2025 as part of the UK-wide Refugee Week.
Hélène will develop six photographic portraits to be installed on bespoke display panels close to City Hall in the Royal Docks. The portraits will be the outcome of small group artist-led workshops with members of Praxis using objects that create links to the participants’ heritage and place of residence. The Line’s presentation will build on the success of Hélène’s acclaimed solo exhibition at Autograph in 2023.
The Line, which has commissioned the project as part of its 10th anniversary programme, will host the artist for a residency in April 2025. During her residency, Hélène will carry out research into the collections held at London Museum Docklands and will deliver a series of photographic workshops with local people, leading to the development of portraits to be displayed in the public realm.
The installation will launch with the artist in conversation with Jean-François Manicom, Senior Curator, London Museum Docklands at the Good Hotel in the Royal Docks.
Hélène Amouzou was born in the Togolese Republic in West Africa. In 2004, she went to study photography and video at the Sint-Jans-Molenbeek Academy of Drawing and Visual arts in Brussels, where she still lives and works today. Over the course of the ten-year period that
While waiting to be granted asylum in Belgium, Hélène made a series of analogue self-portraits. These captivating works play with the notion of sight and invisibility, thus expressing the artist’s uncertain existence. Her lack of recognition, stigmatisation and marginalised position sometimes translate into a blurring and haziness.
In other images, the artist shuts away herself or her possessions – for example clothing or suitcases – in an empty attic room, waiting for the moment when she will once again be able to reinsert these into a home. Finally, she also tries to explore her changing relationship to African culture through traditional costume and objects. The slow method of the photography chimes with the meditative nature of Hélène’s practice and the limited resources with which these photographs were created.
Works by Hélène Amouzou
Left to right: Autoportrait, Molenbeek 2008 (#8); Autoportrait, Molenbeek 2009 (#62); Autoportrait, Molenbeek 2010 (#31); Autoportrait, Molenbeek 2008 (#59)
A picture can reveal a thousand words and these distinctive images reflect on the journey of those who have made the East End their home. Our diversity is our greatest strength and this new commission will celebrate that, as we continue to build a better London for everyone.
Justine Simons OBE, Deputy Mayor for Culture and the Creative Industries
Hélène Amouzou said, “I'm honoured to be working with The Line and Arup to develop this project around subjects that touch me personally: exile, identity, memory and visibility. From Brussels to London, everyone has their own experiences and we'll be sharing them with the members of Praxis. Because it's in the exchange that we'll be able to create the portraits that will be shown in the heart of the Royal Docks.”
Deputy Mayor for Culture and the Creative Industries, Justine Simons OBE said: “This powerful work by Hélène Amouzou is the latest addition to The Line coinciding with Refugee Week. A picture can reveal a thousand words and these distinctive images reflect on the journey of those who have made the East End their home and will resonate with so many people who have settled in London. Our diversity is our greatest strength and this new commission will celebrate that, as we continue to build a better London for everyone.”
Kate Anderson, Head of the Cultural Programme and Partnerships, Royal Docks Team said, “This new artwork by Hélène represents the local people of East London in a beautiful and breathtaking way, connecting with the Docks’ history as a key place of arrival for people from around the world, forging the East End’s incredible diversity we still see today. Hélène’s piece will be situated across from City Hall, echoing the Mayor of London and Mayor of Newham’s welcome to, and celebration of, refugee and migrant communities across London. It embodies the authentic, socially-engaged art-making at the heart of the Royal Docks’ Cultural Strategy.”
Jennifer Greitschus, Head of Cultural Heritage and Exhibitions, Arup said, “It is a great privilege to be co-commissioning Hélène Amouzou whose work has such powerful resonance and relevance in these times. Arup is delighted to be collaborating on this latest of The Line’s Longitudinal Dialogues that take its location on the Greenwich Meridian as a starting point for global cultural exchange.”
Megan Piper, Co-founder and Director, The Line added, “Installed within an avenue of trees adjacent to London’s historic Royal Docks, Hélène’s photographic installation will create an important space for reflection. I’m delighted that this commission has provided an opportunity for us to further our collaboration with Arup Phase 2, London Museum and Praxis and that the work will thoughtfully, and powerfully, respond to its context.”
Gjori Langeland, Head of Communications and Fundraising, Praxis added, “At a time where dehumanising narratives about migrants are all too prevalent, projects like these which give voice to the experiences and memories of people who have migrated are more important than ever. We are so excited that our group members have the opportunity to collaborate with and learn from such a talented and creative artist as Hélène.”
