This seeks to “tilt the mirror” on negative perceptions of Peckham by giving a voice to those who often struggle to be heard in the process of regeneration.
The project was co-designed by Peckham Partnership, an intergenerational group of Peckham residents, Peckham Platform and artist Beverley Bennett.
Bennett worked in collaboration with members of the Golden Oldies, Leaders of Tomorrow and Peckham Park Baptist Church Youth Group to develop a programme of activities and create new artwork.
The project took its title from a conversation that Bennett had with an older friend. Speaking out of turn, the artist was met with the reply “Yuh Figet Yuhself!”. The statement was made in jest but served as a reminder that she had literally and figuratively forgotten herself.
Double meaning is a constant feature in Caribbean patois and with roots in Africa based in Wolof, Igbo/Ibo, Mbunda, Ga and Twi providing the foundations that become ‘remixed’ through speech. Yuh Figet Yuhself works to uncover those roots by drawing on the ability of language and shared diasporic heritage to reconnect and support those experiencing displacement or social estrangement.
Jamaican patois, or Jamaican Creole, is direct and I am constantly fascinated with its power to leave you with a sting
Beverley Bennett
Tilting the Mirror is supported by The National Lottery Community Fund, Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation.
