Welcome to the digital platform of Refuse/Refuge, where you will find more information about the artworks in the exhibition, the participating artists as well a blog with contributions both from practitioners and researchers on issues related to the 21st-century refugee and migrant crisis in the Mediterranean and its representation.

Refuse/Refuge is an exhibition of contemporary art exploring the role of visual politics in shaping the public’s reactions to the 21st-century refugee and migrant crisis in the Mediterranean. At the core of the exhibition lies a series of ethically and politically troubling questions. What does it mean to refuse refuge to someone who has fled from their home countries due to war, violence and poverty? How can we approach these issues and our own ethical responsibility, without using a photojournalistic ‘lens’?

Curated by Martha Cattell and Kyveli Lignou-Tsamantani (PhD candidates, University of York), this exhibition includes artwork by international artists: Majid Adin, Forensic Oceanography, Ina Lounguine, Janne Malmros and Maria Tzanakou.

The exhibition is supported by the History of Art Department, University of York, the Arts and Humanities Research Council, White Rose College of the Arts and Humanities and York Festival of Ideas.

Refuse/Refuge was preceded by three screenings of a 'video-report' by Forensic Architecture in the York Festival of Ideas, June 2018. For more information please visit the York Festival of Ideas.