Reservoir of Gods - ACE365.2

English countryside at harvest time. Poem read over, "You who love England…" Thatched cottage, dogs, trees. Images of Muslims at prayer, silk screen picture The Last Supper I, photograph The Crucifixion, road sign for Harlesden, north London, with hoarding displaying the image of the white robed figures. Faisal Abdu’Allah talks about his parents’ reaction to his wish to be an artist. Thalatha Haqq/The Three Truths (1992). Abdu’Allah describes this piece and its symbolism. Other work. Market scenes: his VO talking about each person being a god. Shops: VO talking about cultural changes that he’s seen in Harlesden. Abdu’Allah opening up the barber’s shop where he works. Men having haircuts. Abdu’Allah’s VO saying that his conversations with customers have informed his knowledge of black history and culture. Aqil, from Scientists of Sound, talking about the interaction between their activities and Abdu’Allah’s art. Images from Abdu’Allah’s series, I Wanna Kill Sam Coz He Ain’t My Motherfuckin’ Uncle (1994). His VO describing how he felt rap artists were suffering from stereotyping. Aqil says that the series was Abdu’Allah’s attempt to make people confront their own attitudes and ideas. Martina Attille, film-maker, is concerned that Abdu’Allah’s images are too extreme, at a time when media images of black men are already criminalised. Mark Sealy, Director of Autograph (the Association of Black Photographers), says that while the image of a black man pointing a gun at the camera/viewer is threatening, a similar image of a white man results in James Bond. More images from the series. Aqil and Aybee from Scientists of Soul believe they are popular because, while they deconstruct stereotypes, they are stereotypes. They can be dismissed as "urban art" and not taken as seriously as old masters would be despite their relevance to today’s culture. Cowleaze Wood, Chiltern Sculpture Trail. Abdu’Allah unmoulding a triangular cement pillar. His VO says how hard it is to break away from the classical painting tradition. Superimposed Nick Bodimeade, Chair of Trustees, Chiltern Sculpture Trail, talks about the strong relationship the white middle classes have with landscape and pastoral images. His VO, over Abdu’Allah continuing to construct his installation, suggests that placing images of black men in these surroundings will cause people to question this relationship.