Relative Poverty: Documentary photography, public engagement and making change

Abstract

This thesis argues for a rehabilitation of documentary photography’s role in advocating for social change. It outlines my practice-led rethinking of concerns first highlighted by Allan Sekula and Martha Rosler in the late 1970s and early 1980s. These concerns can be summarised as the usefulness of the public exhibition of social documentary artworks when aiming to affect public opinion. If we want our photography to change the world we need to heed lessons of the past and incorporate a contemporary participant centred approach. The thesis examines contemporary documentary practices displayed in art settings, the utility of compassion, the difficulties of portraying poverty and finally offers a template of a useful, socially engaged documentary practice - Relative Poverty (2016 -19).

Motivated by concern at the rise of destitution in the UK my primary question asks how effective can documentary photography be in shifting public perceptions of poverty? Could I, from a position of compassion, elicit compassion in others and encourage viewers to “do something” on seeing images of those in poverty?

I describe how my practice uses documentary artworks in a reflexive way with the needs of participants central to the research. Vital context is provided through the use of texts. The results are publicly exhibited and discussed at a variety of venues and events.

I conclude that in order to effect change documentary artworks should be contextualised, prioritising informing the public over aesthetics. Compassion need not be incompatible with the practice of documentary. It should inform what is shown, how it is shown and, generating compassion in audiences can be the aim of the work. The need for participant anonymity should encourage the use of alternative photographic solutions. Photographers should avoid reductive ways of portraying poverty. Successful interventions can be made into public life in underused spaces.

The aims of Relative Poverty (2016 -19) were, to use photography to show inequality and injustice, to reach and inform viewers and to subsequently affect their views. The first two aims were achieved and the last opens up a debate on measuring the success of artworks on audiences. I identify clear areas where documentary could be practised more effectively if its primary aim is to inform the widest public audience.

Date of Award	2025
Original language	English
Supervisor	Mark Durden (Supervisor) & Lisa Barnard (Supervisor)