Julita Hanlon
Zine 10 - Fish and Chips and Other Migrant Creations
How would you describe your profession?
I am a Master of Fine Art student at Glasgow School of Art and an artist.
What’s your country of origin, and when did you come to Scotland?
I am originally from Poland, and I came to Scotland in 1992.
How did you end up in Scotland?
With all the political and economic changes going on in Poland at the time, I felt it would be beneficial to learn English. And what is a better way than to learn it in Scotland? I then went on to do HND Business Administration in Scotland and met my now husband of 27 years somewhere along the way.
As an artist, what medium and formats do you use?
I work mainly in installation, spanning mediums as diverse as metal, etching, screen printing, stitching, text, film, and photography.
Has your experience of migration influenced your art?
My work focuses on social justice, and migration is one of the aspects of it. I am currently carrying out research into homemaking and integration and what these concepts mean to both migrants and host communities.
In your view, does being a migrant artist influence how your art is seen in Scotland and the UK?
I am a migrant and my work might touch on the migration issues, but I have rarely considered this in the context of how my art might be perceived. I’ve never had feedback on my art that mentioned my background.
What is your zine poster artwork about? What medium did you use and why?
My zine poster focused on migrant inventors, and I absolutely loved doing research for this. Putting my findings in a visual form was a challenge, and in the end I decided on a digital network diagram that would have the details of selected inventors on. I felt that borrowing this image from science would suit the topic and work well here.
What elements of your cultural heritage, if any, have you noticed in Scotland?
When I came here, I found my community through a few second-generation Poles. I frequently attended the Polish Sikorski Club near Kelvingrove. After Poland joined the EU in 2004, there was a growing number of Polish shops, but this trend seems to be disappearing now. However, I love the fact that celeriac is now available in most shops! I missed that vegetable for a long time.
Has anything happened in your career as a result of you contributing your artwork to Migrant Voice’s zine series?
I have enjoyed working with Migrant Voice on several projects. Involvement with Migrant Voice offered me an opportunity to meet new people, lead some workshops, and in the end, become part of an ongoing creative collective - Threading Stories.
Is there anything else you’d like to share about your art, experience of migration, or heritage?
Being a migrant opens our eyes to the world and allows us to understand that people are essentially people, no matter where they are from. I was brought up in a very open-minded, tolerant, and welcoming community, and I brought that mindset to Scotland. I find it interesting to consider my heritage in the context of a changing society and to watch myself grow as an individual rather than a product of one culture or another. Through my art, I want to provoke a reflection and pose questions on how we can make our world better, our society more just, and our communities more welcoming.