Eileen Perrier was born in London, England into a family of Ghanaian and Dominican descent on 27 September 1974, gaining her BA from the Surrey Institute of Art and Design (now University of the Creative Arts), Farnham (1993–96) and her MA from the the Royal College of Art (1998–2000). Inspired by a diverse range of portraiture histories, encompassing a variety of styles and traditions, including Victorian portraiture and African studio photography, her practice explores cultural identity, diversity and placement.
Photographer Eileen Perrier was born into a family of Ghanaian and Dominican descent in London, England on 27 September 1974, giving her a ‘dual heritage’ which presented her ‘with questions around, placement, cultural identity and diversity’ (artist’s website). She gained her BA from the Surrey Institute of Art and Design (now University of the Creative Arts), Farnham (1993–96) and her MA from the Royal College of Art, London (RCA,1998–2000). Prior to starting her degree course, Perrier met émigré Jamaican photographer Armet Francis by chance in Camden Town, and he subsequently became her mentor and a primary influences. She later recalled that ‘His work was truly amazing to me. Here was a photographer based in London who was Black (of Jamaican heritage) and had done a seminal project which he then published into a book called The Black Triangle: The People of the African Diaspora […]. I found this book quite moving, since Francis had traveled across continents documenting the Black experience, from the perspective of a Black photographer’ (Dodge & Burn). Other important influences from the Black diaspora included Stuart Hall, Kobena Mercer and Paul Gilroy.
Perrier’s photographic practice is influenced by a diverse range of portraiture histories, encompassing a variety of styles and traditions. Inspired by her first visit to Ghana in 1996, her earlier works drew on traditional African portraiture, producing vivid and colourful images in stark contrast to the black and white images that typically portrayed poverty-stricken Africa in the mainstream media. Perrier stated: ‘My objective was to communicate a less preconceived impression of what it is to be a person of African descent’ (artist’s website). Going beyond the limits of conventional portrait photography, Perrier incorporates diverse approaches in her practice, for instance exploring Victorian portrait techniques and taking photographs of individuals she encounters in her daily life using her mobile phone, as seen in her Mobile Portraits series (2012–19). In the artist’s own words, ‘Portraiture allows me to encounter people I would never have the opportunity to know. This can be a brief moment in both our lives. What is great, is that I am able to document our interaction’ (Peckham Square Studio leaflet). One of her best-known series, Grace (2000), featured portraits of men and women of varying age, race, and ethnicity who, like Perrier herself, had gaps between their front teeth. As noted by Pamela Allara, ‘By this supposed flaw (apparently seen positively in African culture), the assembled faces suddenly attained a group identity, while revealing the flawed logic in any such categorization’ (Allara 2001). Afro Hair and Beauty Show (1998–2003) was begun in 1998 when Perrier first visited the Afro Hair and Beauty Show and photographed its visitors. In these portraits, she captured the vibrant and diverse styles of Black beauty in Britain, celebrating the unique culture of Black hair, while also challenging stereotypes and highlighting the underrepresented experiences of Black hair professionals and consumers. This series combined hyper-realistic colour with studio practices of the late 20th century, Perrier engaging with her subjects in a series of intimate encounters. The resulting images drew inspiration from the early African studio work and the colour-saturated paintings of artists like Barkley L Hendricks from the 1970s, who used fashion and hairstyles as means for self-expression and social masquerading.
Perrier has been involved with Autograph Gallery, London (Autograph ABP) since 1995, working at the organisation for a time, assisting director Mark Sealy. ABP's archive includes selected Afro Hair and Beauty images and shots from her Red, Gold and Green series (1997), in which she photographed members of her Ghanaian extended family against a backdrop of red, gold or green cloth (colours from the Rastafarian spectrum), expressing both her personal roots and political association. In 1995, Perrier featured in the groundbreaking exhibition Africa Remix. Curated by Paris-based writer and curator of Cameroonian descent, Simon Njami, it opened at the Museum Kunst Palast in Dusseldorf, Germany, and subsequently travelled to the Hayward Gallery, London. The exhibition showcased the variety of artistic production on the continent and in the diaspora, bringing African social, political, and cultural issues to the attention of the British public and featuring 85 artists, including Zineb Sedira and Yinka Shonibare. Perrier’s exhibition Peckham Square Studios (2014), featured black and white portraits of individuals from the Peckham community, photographed with a large format camera, headrest and black and white Polaroid film, reminiscent of the large format cameras with glass slides used in 19th century photography. Similar to the work of photographer Daniel Meadows, in particular Free Photographic Omnibus, Perrier’s portraiture revealed an interest in the everyday and ‘valuing ordinary people, treating them as individuals not as types’ (Meadows 2001). In the UK public domain Perrier’s work is represented in the Tate collection, Autograph Gallery and Parliament of the United Kingdom.
Consult items in the Ben Uri archive related to [Eileen Perrier]
Publications related to [Eileen Perrier] in the Ben Uri Library