ADELA SULIMAN, of Thomson Reuters Foundation, on how religious communities are coming together in London’s west…
Suburbs are often seen as sleepy backwaters, but a new project aims to show how a vibrant mix of faith communities is putting some of London’s less celebrated outskirts at the forefront of social change.
Mosques, synagogues and Sikh temples nestle alongside traditional pubs and shops on the streets of Ealing, a west London suburb that is one of the most culturally diverse areas in Britain, according to local government statistics.
A group of women sew and embroider together as part of a project that brings together faith communities in west London during an event at the Tate Modern art galler on 18th May. PICTURE: Adela Suliman/Thomson Reuters Foundation.
“These are the kinds of places where real social and cultural change is taking place,” David Gilbert, a professor of urban and historical geography at London’s Royal Holloway University, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
“People are just living everyday lives and rubbing along together,” said Prof Gilbert, part of the “Making Suburban Faith” project, which aims to highlight how religious groups are creating community spaces in London’s suburbs.
“People are just living everyday lives and rubbing along together.”
– David Gilbert, a professor of urban and historical geography at London’s Royal Holloway University
While attention often focuses on London’s grand urban developments, Prof Gilbert says faith communities on the city’s edge are quietly repurposing old community halls or converting homes into churches or Sikh temples.
Betty Pemberton, 76, has lived in Ealing since the 1960s when she migrated from Ireland to work as a nurse, and says the area has changed with each new wave of immigration.
A committed Catholic, she still attends mass every week, but says the numbers have dwindled as the make-up of the community has changed. Just under half of Ealing’s residents said they were Christian in a 2011 census.
“It changed when the Irish came…then we had the Indians and the West Indians with Wind Rush, it’s changed completely,” said Pemberton.
“It’ll never be any other way, it (London) is almost like a magnet.”
“Making Suburban Faith” aims to celebrate those changes through everything from architecture to food.
Embroidered artwork by members of various faith communities in West London is on display as part of an exhibition exploring urban faith at the Tate Modern art gallery in London on 18th May. PICTURE: Adela Suliman/Thomson Reuters Foundation.
Filmmaker Laura Cuch honed in on Ealing as a multicultural microcosm for her documentary about the links between food and spirituality, which can bring diverse faith communities together.
Her film profiles a middle-aged Muslim man, an elderly Catholic woman and a young Jewish student in Ealing.
In it, neighbours learn about each other’s faiths through food – from a fruity Christmas pudding to a spicy Moroccan tagine and a chicken soup, known as Jewish penicillin for its cold-curing properties.
“Food can bridge a gap, it’s always used to bring people together,” said Ms Cuch at a recent screening of the film.
“Ealing has its own identity as a very multicultural area with a very particular migration history that means that there are people from all over the world living together in this suburban area.”
As part of the project, international architect Ada Yvars Bravo worked with local schoolchildren in Ealing to help design mock shared religious spaces.
Student created mock religious buildings make up part of an exhibition exploring urban space for faith at the Tate Modern. PICTURE: Adela Suliman/Thomson Reuters Foundation.
The project led to a wealth of ideas and designs including 3D modelling, stacked spaces and real-life visits to faith centres.
“What we try to do is to say you don’t need to differentiate, that’s why we love what they’re doing,” said Ms Bravo of Mangera Yvars Architects (MYAA), which has designed mosques in Qatar and Orthodox churches in Georgia.
“It’s incredible because they are teaching people that everyone is the same and we can live all together.”
