Migration is one of the most serious issues affecting the contemporary world, with thousands of people displaced every day. Today, there are several refugee camps accommodating people who have fled their homes and are not expecting to get back any time soon. Several issues account for the unforeseen global population redistribution; something that will continue to strike the society whether it likes it or not. Whereas some people migrate for fun, it is imperative to add to the account that the majority migrate because of the striking unpleasant conditions in their environment. Some of the most known factors that have contributed to unplanned migration include but are not limited to natural disasters such as floods, hurricanes, and tornadoes. Even so, some man-made issues such as terrorism and regional conflicts are also major causes of migration. In as much as migration has remained a pertinent factor in the history of the world, civil unrest, war, climate change, and economic dislocations are combining to create disposable populations. It is also important to note that regardless of the reasons for migration, this process often has some impacts, which might both be positive or negative. Therefore, this dissertation will focus largely on some of the aspects of migration and immigration, and the possible effects that this have had, especially to artists and their artworks.
Identity and Belonging
Conventionally, art is perceived as a language, which can be shared between people of different cultures, nations or even races. It has the power of re-declaring identities that have been abandoned or lost when people find new homes. Art give migrants voices as a means of communication in a world deemed unsympathetic. It has also been demonstrated that art has the capacity of bringing up powerful questions around, and outside identity, legality, and status. Nonetheless, the big concern that has remained unaddressed for years now is whether art can really transcend the cultural and national borders. Many people have questioned the ability of art to have real impact on how people think about identity and migration. Grounded in this concern, several thinkers have aired their thoughts regarding the connection between migration and identity. In fact, many believe that art does not only hold the power to change public perception but can also change the public debate since it has the ability to change every individual. Sentiments and public debates can change because of art. The modern world of art is quick to tackle trending subjects such as migration, but it is up to the people who are impacted to keep the conversation flowing (Hall 1996, p. 12). The purpose of art is to embolden people to keep talking, listening to voices other than their own, and continue creating welcome through all the ways that they can.
According to Hall (1996, p. 15), identity is prone to constant change. In as much as people might focus on minimizing this process and establish strategies for gaining a sense of individual continuity, identity transformations are immanent part of every person’s biography. However, the change is normally processual. Following experiences makes people to change their self-definitions in the end. Besides, changes can be characterized by turning points created by critical incidents. These biographical moments enables people to see the change and make them explore and validate their transformed aspects of self (Hall 1996, p. 16). An immigrant’s biographical situation generates vast of critical incidents that resonates with the effect of this experience on someone’s identity.
Various studies in art and migration have shown that arts present an opportunity for people to express who they are to the whole world. Drawing, drama, dance, painting, music, photography, and other forms of arts give first and second generation refugees and migrants a creative opportunity of telling their stories, recounting their powerful memories, as well as sharing their thoughts and feelings of pain, trauma, freedom, and joy (Hall 1996, p. 16). Besides, taking part in arts also gives the audience and the viewers a different view on the encounter of exile and migration, the search for identity, as well as the sense of exclusion. This research also suggested that creative workshops could be some of the best fulfilling spaces for individuals of diverse types and age groups to come together and share their thoughts with people from different identities, backgrounds, and life experiences (Hall 1996, p. 16).
While detailing the tale of black British artists, Stuart Hall, a cultural theorist, deciphered between two groups; that is, the first ‘post colonials’ and the last ‘colonials’ (Hall 1996, p. 18). The first group who came to Britain upon the end of World War 2 was the modern artists who embraced abstract expression. The second group was the Native British generation, who pioneered the Black Art Movement (Hall 1996, p. 18). These British-born citizens were against racism and were motivated by issues of identity. The author adds that, "Separated from their homes of origin, marginalised from society’s mainstream, excluded and stereotyped, discriminated against in the public sphere, pushed around by the police, abused in the streets, and profoundly alienated from recognition or acceptance by British society at large, [the ‘postcolonials’] were haunted by questions of identity and belonging. ‘Who are we?’ ‘Where do we come from?’ ‘Where do we really belong?’" (Hall 1996, p. 18).
Migration as a Movement and its effects on Perception
Braidotti’s Nomadic theory gives a well detailed explanation of migration as a movement and how different people perceive it. According to the theory, people always move in this contemporary world (Braidotti 2011, p. 215). There is no life made out of a story but it is true that stories are made out of lives. Therefore, the story of humanity is a history of migration. From the first time the Homo erectus moved out of Africa traversing to Eurasia until today, human beings have had reasons and means of travelling from one region to another. At times, such movements are peaceful, planned, and orderly. However, at times, movements are desperate and harried, a violent expulsion of huge populations running away from famine, war, persecution, or any other natural disaster. Over time, polities, civilizations, and communities have been supplanted, enriched’ or destroyed by immigration of people from foreign lands with various ethnic groups and cultures (Braidotti 2011, p. 257). People have always migrated for pleasure, but currently, things are different with more individuals being forced out of their ancestral lands than any other time since the truce of the Second World War.
The daily movements of people from different regions in the world map emphasize the fact that the concern of unplanned migration is not merely a problem in the south-East Asian or European continent but to the whole world (Braidotti 2011, p. 317). Neither does the issue belong to the rich or the poor nations. For the media houses, the concept of forced migration is an inherently difficult story to cover and report. The victims who make these journeys are normally coming from situations of persecution or warzones. In fact, many would even opt to keep the reasons for their movements to themselves because it is traumatizing and difficult to tell. A good percentage of forced immigrants live clandestine existences where they have arrived, some are incarcerated, while others get stranded on ships and boats in the ocean. Consequently, the least heard voices in the debates surrounding migration are usually that of the migrants. These victims are defined by the languages people use to describe them (Braidotti 2011, p. 319). Besides, their image, which is a broader conceptualization of who they really are, is not created by themselves, but others who see them.
Ahmed (2004) agrees with the fact that the media is responsible with how it ought to cover and report on some of the most vulnerable populations in the world; a responsibility that has not always been executed well. The discourse has outliers, but those who are seeking for asylum are condemned by others and called names, which are not worth for mankind. In other words, a good percentage of people who have fled their homes have been perceived differently, with many people failing to understand their predicaments. Across the globe, respected politicians, and even some of the most powerful people in the world, use information on immigrants to build narratives around “suspected terrorists,” “queue jumpers,” or “illegal immigrants;” constructions that are normally accepted, processed, and disseminated uncritically by reporters (Ahmed 2004, p 19).
Forced Immigration and Unforced Immigration
It is also worth noting that when movement is orderly and controlled, it becomes less challenging both to the public and to the politicians but when it is chaotic or rather perceived to be out of control, it is accompanied by fears of the unknown (Ahmed 2004, p 27). It would be quite unfortunate if it would have to take a tragedy such as a standoff of boatloads of people seeking asylum or deaths of hundreds drowned in the ocean while looking for a port only to land and retell their tragic experiences to the world. However, with all said and done, if nothing changes in how the migrants and immigrants are perceived, then there is no any hope that anything will change or get better in the future, and these calamities will continue moving with us every day. Thus, changing the perception of the asylum seekers should not start with politicians creating false dichotomy of the “bad” and “good” refugees and end at the media giving biased information; but should be an individual responsibility of exercising moral judgement and perception on people who just hope that someday they would lead a normal life.
Psychological effects of Migration
Various areas of research have shown that people suffers serious psychological and mental consequences due to migration. Of course, this effect is felt by both individuals who are forced to migrate and those who move willingly. From culture shock for people who traverse regions for pleasure, to trauma for those who have no option but to flee from their ancestral land, it is important to manage these migration and immigration aftermath. For many immigrants, assimilation can cause depression as well as some other related challenges of health. Grounded in vast studies in the past, it is highly likely for people who have landed into other countries or new regions to feel anxious when they have to learn new language, make new friends, get accustomed to the ethnic groups in that area, and not limited to finding a new job (Braidotti 2011, p. 195). This has been widely described as the culture shock, which many people who migrate to start over a new life goes through. In fact, other researches pointed out that in some situations, culture shock may turn out to be more serious to an extent of causing higher incidence of mental illnesses such as schizophrenia among some people.
People who have escaped violent situations or politically volatile areas tend to be at a greater risk of developing serious mental issues as opposed to immigrants who comes into the country under various circumstances. Even so, evidences have indicated that the experience of discrimination and racism impacts on the health of both refugees and immigrants; thus, leading to something sociologists refer to as marginalization, a situation where specific groups are made to feel inferior to their counterparts in the new land. Minh-Ha (2010, p. 51) reiterates this by adding that migration victims always feel out of place and find such environments too cruel for raising a family or making a fortune. Normally, regardless of the age of migration, marginalized immigrants are forced to the edges of the society and go through grave challenges of discrimination, inequality, and lack of resources.
With the psychological and physical challenges that immigrants have often gone through, the majority have shown significant reliance on arts during their therapy sessions and recovery process. This explains the importance that both artists and their arts have played throughout the migration and immigration process. Ahmed (2004, p 93) posits that most adolescents of minority origins have shown the need to explore their acculturation and immigration process through the art programs and therapies given at their respective schools. Through the process of art therapy the Hispanic students could create artwork, which made them overcome the grief process of what they had lost, have a better understanding of self, as well as see the opportunity to come up with a support group among one another. The author added that adolescent clients of Hispanic origin seemed to gravitate towards unconventional forms of arts; for instance, the traditional Hispanic crafts and community-based art projects.
Further research also unfolds that from a psychodynamic perspective, the tendency of depression working inwards is a prime moment for the heart to externalize such thoughts and feelings. The work of heart does not only provide containment but also safety for the repressed feelings and gives the individual an opportunity the opportunity to explore such emotions safely, something that might be tough for them to express verbally. Some therapeutic components in the process of artmaking such as painting plays a crucial role both in psychological and physical health by allowing the victims affected by immigration to release subdued emotions such as the feelings of anxiety, depression, and helplessness (Ahmed 2004, p 219). The author continues by adding that the impact of working with paints strengthens an individual’s self-esteem, hence reducing the outcome of anxiety and depression.
Artist inspired by Migration: Case of Krzysztof Kieslowski
The Three Color Triology (Blue, White, and Red) compiled by Kieslowski is one piece of art that ties directly to the impacts that migrants and immigrants feel as far as the issues of migration are concerned. The common themes that the artist addresses in this Decalogue include equality, liberty, and fraternity. It is indubitable that everyone who has ever watched these films would appreciate how the director has touched on some of the key aspects of life that people either realize or do not notice that they are dealing with.
Each of the three colors of trilogy has a unique thing to represent. As mentioned earlier, Kieslowski uses White, Blue, and Red to narrate the tales of equality, liberty, and fraternity respectively; episodes, which are no doubt that migrants and immigrants go through. The director of the Three Colors Trilogy often covers topics such as death, loss, and illness, though deep humor pools float beneath his films’ surfaces. There is a sequence in White, which he did in 1994, where a character he considers his hero, is desperately homesick in Paris to an extent that he organizes to be taken back to Warsaw, while in a suitcase (Coates 2002, p. 45). On the other end of the airport, his friend watches with horror just to see the bag but it is already stolen by unknown thieves who breaks the lock only to find a little man coiled in the suitcase. The disappointed thieves beat the desperate man savagely and dump him on a rubbish heap. Even though he wakes up out of the bin staggering to his feet, he believes that this was a triumphant journey. Even though it was tough, he eventually got back home (Coates 2002, p. 47). White (1994) ties closely to what migrants always feel at their destinations. At many times, migrants would opt to die poor at home than being marginalized in a foreign land.
The Blue film, released in 1993, stars the life of a young woman who lost her child and husband in a car accident. After a period of grief, she decides to give her ex-lover a call and let him know that his chance had just come through. The two have sex with a hope that this would clear her mind off the tragedy she just went through, but this does not help (Coates 2002, p. 42). Therefore, she decides to migrate to an obscure street in unknown corner of Paris, determined to meet no one she knows. Unfortunately, she bumps into her husband’s princess. This makes her wonders if she is ever going to have liberty throughout her life. Red is another interesting film, starring Irene Jacob, with stage name Valentine (Coates 2002, p. 58). The character hits a retired judge’s dog and she decides to nurse it until it gets well. Thereafter, she takes back the dog to the owner, who is apparently interested in her but so egocentric to admit. The one-time divorced judge would rather intercept his neighbor’s telephone calls and monitor their movements through his window than worrying about a dog. Throughout the film, the ex-judge and Valentine might have fallen in love with each other, though the two cannot admit. Kieslowski’s Decalogue could be a clear congruence of what migrants and immigrants face in their daily lives; things they yearn for but cannot afford to have because of one reason or the other (Coates 2002, p. 59). Besides, it shows how a piece of art can be tied to express the desperation and predicaments of immigrants in a foreign land.
Shirin Neshat
Shirin Neshat is another artist whose work of art has been pervaded with a sense of mysticism. As a lecturer, she presented images from her iconic bodies of work and musical voice. The artist explored a lot of themes including freedom and oppression and migrating populations, violence and peace, courage, as well as exile and home. She also depicted the need for imagination to flourish and make an art, which speaks to all the conditions of humankind out of it (Myers 2016, p. 29). Throughout Neshat’s artworks, she had a challenge finding balance between what she perceives real and what she experiences in the world that affects her and turning it into art.
Vast of portraits made by this photographer, including the Border Crossings have many things in common. In one portrait a woman would be crying and in the other, a woman pointing a gun. Whereas the photographs largely revolve around women, they show the pain they go through and not merely focusing on their beauty. The filmmaker also tries to detail the harsh experiences of war and violence that led to many instances of forced migration from the east to the West. As an Iranian-American, Neshat still identifies herself with Iran, including her religion and culture but is saddened with retelling her tale regarding the experience she had in her motherland (Myers 2016, p. 57).
Conclusion
With all said and done, it is substantial to reaffirm that there is a close association between migration and artworks. Artists have detailed their personal stories through the lens of others concerning how migration has played a role in influencing their identity and belonging. Migration has also been perceived differently from political and media points of view. Finally, it is also important to recount that migration has predisposed people to different psychological issues, which apparently, have been duly addressed through various artworks.
References
Ahmed, S.,2004. The Cultural Politics of Emotion. Edinburgh: Edinburgh UP.
Braidotti, R., 2011. Nomadic theory: the portable Rosi Braidotti. Columbia University Press.
Coates, P., 2002. Kieślowski and the Antipolitics of Color: A Reading of the" Three Colors" Trilogy. Cinema Journal, pp.41-66.
Hall, S., 1996. „Who needs identity?‟ in S. Hall and P. Du Gay (eds.) Questions of Cultural Identity.
Minh-Ha, T.T., 2010. Elsewhere, within here: Immigration, refugeeism and the boundary event. Routledge.
Myers, S., 2016. Disrupting the Binary, Reclaiming the Narrative: The Representation of the Eastern Other in Shirin Neshat's Turbulent and Rapture and Emily Jacir's Memorial..(Doctoral dissertation, Barnard College).
