Women artists shaping British art

Charmaine Watkiss’s intricate pencil drawing The Passengers tells a powerful story of the migration and legacy of the Windrush generation, questioning ideas around sovereignty and what constitutes Britishness.

The three figures in the piece are self-portraits that contain elements from three of her previous works. The kneeling figure to the left is an evolution of Watkiss’s earlier work Lost/Found, an excavation into London’s maritime past and the creation of the City of London financial district. Starting with a simple question – ‘Why is Jamaica Road in Bermondsey called Jamaica Road?’ – Watkiss uncovered the history of the borough of Southwark’s participation in the transatlantic slave trade. By allowing the import of goods (particularly tobacco and sugar) along its docks, Southwark played a major role in creating the wealth in the commercial district of London that we recognise today. On the sleeve of the kneeling figure, Watkiss has included architectural imagery from buildings in London’s financial district.

Charmaine Watkiss, The Passengers, 2020 © Charmaine Watkiss. All rights reserved, DACS 2023.

The central figure originates from Watkiss’s work The World Has Four Corners, a poignant piece that reminds us that the Black community can be found all over the world. Two hummingbirds (the national birds of Jamaica) are depicted in the fabric of the central figure’s dress subtly referencing Watkiss’s Jamaican heritage. The island of Jamaica was often the last stop on transatlantic slave trade routes. The treacherous nature of the journey and inhumane conditions endured by Africans aboard the ships (which made multiple stops across the Americas and the Caribbean) meant that only a few survived until this final stop. The Taínos (a historic indigenous community in the Caribbean) considered hummingbirds a symbol of transformation and rebirth, a process that both the island and community of Jamaica has gone through tenfold. Hummingbirds are also known to be fierce fighters and defenders of their territory.

The figure to the right of the work is drawn in a patterned outfit that Watkiss first included in her work They Didn’t Come Here to Stay. The original work tells the story of the generation of Watkiss’s parents’ arrival to the UK. Using the imagery of the Three Graces from Greek mythology, Watkiss describes the journey of arrival, discord and settlement. The pattern used in both these works is a William Morris design called Windrush that was created in 1883. The pattern was one of thirteen created by Morris that were named after tributaries (fresh water streams that feed into a larger river) of the Thames. It features large flower heads that resemble peonies overlapping with smaller plants and scrolling foliage. Watkiss’s inclusion of this pattern within her work perhaps alludes to the Windrush community’s rejuvenation of London following the Second World War.

All three figures in The Passengers are connected by the long thread of a scrying pendulum. This tool of divination has been used since the 17th century to elicit spiritual guidance, make decisions, answer questions and cleanse negative energy. Pendulums have also been used to locate lost objects; the positioning of the pendulum towards the bottom of the boat suggests that the three figures are looking for direction and guidance from the many Africans who either jumped or were thrown overboard from slave ships.

Through her use of drawing, a primary language and technique in the art making process, Watkiss is able to load her work with symbolism.