Turning the tide of tragedy into charity

Timothy William Lee

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Three years ago a group of men stood on the beach in front of the Bakau Fish Market looking out to sea, occasionally pointing, occasionally speaking quietly to one another. I sat nearby on the tiny beach of an adjacent hotel thinking about a swim.

There are turtles in that area, and though elusive and hard to spot, I would often spend hours watching the waves and for a possible glimpse of a shy turtle. That particular day I thought I saw something surface and disappear again. Quite slowly and deliberately the group of men approached the tiny area of beach where I was sitting. It became obvious very quickly. The next few waves delivered the dead body of a teenager near to the shore whereupon one of the men waded into the sea and returned with the lifeless body in his arms. He carefully placed the body onto a sheet and some prayers were said.

The bodies of four more boys were washed up on the beaches nearby that day, they had paid the ultimate price like so many others who risk their lives going 'Backway'. The Atlantic tide had delivered more tragedy to the beaches of West Africa and has continued to do so every day since then. For some 'Backway' itinerants there is no way back.

A few days later I found myself residing near the Slave Market area in Janjangbureh reading the autobiography of Olaudah Equiano, an account of a life brutalised by enslavement, oppression, betrayal and dehumanisation. Yet somehow this man emerged from abject degradation to rub shoulders with the 'good and the great' of the British Empire. The overused word 'epic' really is appropriate when describing his life story. Around about the same time one of England's greatest painters, JMW Turner, painted a canvas entitled 'The Slave Ship' which depicts one of the most infamous events in British involvement in the Slave trade. 132 slaves were thrown overboard and left to drown in order that the captain, his crew, and his employers could claim compensation for losses at sea. A shocking painting that literally made waves among the viewers when exhibited in 1840.

So where's this going? ...

Could there be a way of turning the tide of tragedy into something positive?

Thus my painting is a reworking of Turner's 'Slave Ship' replacing the slave ship with an inflatable migrant boat. I finished the painting 'Migrant Ship' last March in Janjangbureh. It was subsequently featured in The Point and The Standard. Following conversations with, and encouragement from, Hassoum Ceesay at The National Museum I had a limited edition print run of 150 copies produced with a view to raising money for needy schools here in the Gambia. All profits to needy causes, direct aid.

'Migrant Ship' was then featured in The Western Morning News following an interview with acclaimed freelance journalist Andy Lias. It was then featured in the UK 's most socially aware magazine, The Big Issue. The Guardian, shame on them, rejected my advances but might yet recognise the error of their ways.

As a consequence of sales of the prints of 'Migrant Ship', it has been possible to employ the services of 'Perfect Stitches' tailors Bundung, near Nusrat School, to tailor 200 school uniforms for Jamali Islamic School and Brikamaba Primary School, plus supplying 100 school bags between Panchang Upper Basic School and Farafenni Upper Basic School. These items are on top of 800 uniforms previously tailored by Perfect Stitches and supplied to other schools across The Gambia. A framed print of 'Migrant Ship' has been presented to The National Museum.

Had it not been for the assistance of Omar Bah at The Standard, Osman Kargbo at The Point, Hassoum Ceesay at The Museum, much of the funds raised would have been unavailable. The press coverage has been invaluable. There is still much to do and many more uniforms and bags to purchase as a result of sales of prints of 'Migrant Ship'. The project is ongoing and gaining pace and will not stop until all the prints have been sold. The original is currently exhibited in The Millfield School Open Art Exhibition in UK priced at £2,400.