Tired of the xenophobia that Central and Eastern European youths face in the UK, Johana Kasalicka set out to make a positive portrait of her community
, exploring Central and Eastern European youth culture in the UK. “It’s kind of ironic that she has this sweatshirt on,” says Kasalicka. She explains that, at the time of shooting, her friend in the photograph had shared her desire to move away from London due to her feelings of disappointment after Brexit, and a sense that her opportunities here were more limited than expected.
This is Kasalicka’s first foray into documentary photography. Taking a sensitive and intimate look into her friend’s lives, she also brings elements of her fashion photography background into the work and process. “The project started as an exploration of my Central Eastern European identity. Back home in the Czech Republic, I never thought of myself as an Eastern European – I’d rather think about myself as European or Czech.
Instead of focusing on the barriers and the – at time explicit – xenophobia that her friends have faced in the UK, Kasalicka wanted to create a positive representation of her community. Throughout the series of photographs, the hidden symbolism and markers of Eastern European culture may not immediately jump out to everyone, but this doesn’t bother Kasalicka too much.
The image of a finger pointing out the Czech Republic on a small plastic globe will feel instantly familiar for many Eastern Europeans in the UK, who are so often longing for their diverse countries and experiences to be known, recognised, and understood. For Kasalicka, it was important to celebrate Central and Eastern European heritage, while acknowledging the diversity of the different countries in the region, with their different histories, languages and complex identities.
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