Nancy Newberry: Articles of Faith

About

Following on from an exhibition of her work Smoke Bombs and Border Crossings at Luton’s Departure Lounge, Dallas-based photographer Nancy Newberry has created a series of new photographic portraits of the leaders, members and young people of Luton’s faith communities. This is her first UK commission. 

In Articles of Faith, Newberry has collaborated with people of all religions in Luton, photographing them wearing the clothes, accessories, icons or symbols that define or acknowledge their faith.  The series, which is inspired by a fascination with the accoutrements of the artist’s own Catholic faith, examines the role that dress and its association with faith plays in defining a person’s identity and how they are received by, and engage with, the world. It also reflects Luton’s diversity and the array of different faith communities who live side by side in the town, celebrating the town’s kaleidoscope of cultures and religions. 

With an emphasis on costume, uniform, the regalia, rituals and the iconography of belonging, Nancy’s internationally recognised brand of performative photographic portraiture is always bespoke and personal and the result of collaboration with those she photographs.