‘Portraits of a Global Law School’ brought together over 50 alumni, students and members of staff to have their photographs taken at The Dickson Poon School of Law, King’s College London. 

A selection of the portraits has also been installed in the East Wing of Somerset House, alongside a specially curated series of images and texts related to the exhibition. 

Everyone who took part in the project was also interviewed, by Kieran Mcgrath. Using these conversations, brief texts were written to accompany the portraits, describing each featured person’s relationship to the School. This combination of portraiture and narrative is designed to articulate the complex diversity that constitutes the School’s global community. 

One major theme that quickly became apparent, even in the project’s early stages, was how the School’s progressive sense of inclusivity has allowed students to thrive. This was as true for those who studied here in the 1950s as it was for those who have only recently arrived, irrespective of whether they were born in the United Kingdom, or in places as diverse as Nigeria, Colombia, Hong Kong or Iraq. 

In celebrating the achievements of our alumni, students and staff from a diverse array of backgrounds, the School is working in support of the university’s Race Equality Charter Mark. Creating a space for an open dialogue between the School and its wider community is central to tackling prejudice and perceived barriers. 

The project functions, not just as an opportunity for individuals to tell their personal stories, but also for an understanding of the School’s collective identity that goes beyond superficial categories of gender, race and ability. 

Portraits of a Global Law School are displayed on level -1 in Somerset House East Wing.  

https://www.flickr.com/photos/kcl_law/sets/72157657014217240 
www.kcl.ac.uk/law/about/vis-arts/global-portraits.aspx